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Panasonic Lumix ZS100 / TZ100http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/compact-cameras/panasonic-tz100-zs100-1312056/review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/compact-cameras/panasonic-tz100-zs100-1312056/reviewWith its one-inch sensor and big zoom range, the Panasonic Lumix ZS100 / TZ100 could be the ideal travel camera.Wed, 13 Dec 2017 10:25:00 +0000techradar.comPanasonic entered the digital camera market in 2001, and in 2006 produced the first of its popular ZS range (TZ outside the US), a series of cameras with a small body and a large zoom range designed to appeal to travellers.

It's safe to say that in the 10 intervening years, lots of advancements have been made, many of which Panasonic itself has been first to introduce. ZS / TZ cameras have proved a big hit over the years, and with the shift towards more high-end features in compact cameras, Panasonic has now raised its game with a new model, the Lumix ZS100 / TZ100.

The most noteworthy change that the ZS100 / TZ100 brings is the move from a 1/2.3-inch sensor like the unit found in the ZS60 / TZ80, to a much larger 1-inch type device with 20.1 million effective pixels. One inch sensors have become very popular in the past few years, first with Sony's RX100 range, and more lately, with Canon's latest G series compact cameras.

Features

1.0-inch CMOS sensor, 20.1MP

25-250mm f/2.8-5.9 zoom lens

4K video capture

A 1.0-inch sensor immediately raises the ZS100 / TZ100 above the level of many other rival travel cameras. It's the same same sensor as is found in Panasonic's top-end bridge camera, the very successful Lumix FZ1000. In the ZS100 / TZ100, it is combined with a new Venus Engine processor and a Leica DC Vario-Elmarit 25-250mm f/2.8-5.9 zoom lens. There's also Panasonic's Power OIS stabilisation system for stills photography and 5-axis hybrid OIS stabilisation for video.

Despite the increase in pixel count over that of last year's ZS50 / TZ70, the fact that the sensor is 4x larger in the ZS100 means that the pixels are 2.4x bigger, which should be very good news for image quality and noise control in particular. This has given Panasonic the courage to give the ZS100 a native sensitivity range of ISO125-12,800, and there are also expansion settings of ISO80, 100 and 25,600.

The 10x optical zoom means that Panasonic is describing the ZS100 as belonging to an entirely new sector of the travel compact market – premium superzoom. All of the other small form (pocketable) one-inch sensor cameras are limited in their zoom range, so it's quite exciting to see the company coming up with a camera which should appeal even more to travelling photographers.

Given Panasonic's enthusiasm for all things 4K, it's no surprise that the ZS100 has 4K recording capability (at 30 or 25 frames per second) and 4K Photo modes are present to make it easy to shoot 8MP still images at 30 frames per second (fps). There's also Panasonic's latest addition to the 4K fold, Post Focus mode. In this mode the camera takes a sequence of images with different focus distances and you can choose the shot in which your subject is sharp post capture.

In addition, the ZS100 has 4K cropping which enables the composition of 4K footage to be improved and down-sampled to Full HD in-camera.

Another cherry on the specification cake is the fact that the ZS100 can record raw files as well as JPEGs

Viewfinders are making a welcome comeback to compact cameras and the ZS100 / TZ100 has a 0.2-inch, 1,160,000-dot electronic viewfinder built-in to make it easier to compose images in bright ambient light. Naturally this is accompanied by a larger screen on the back of the camera, and in this instance it's a 3-inch 1,040,000-dot unit that is touch-sensitive. Helpfully there's an eye sensor to detect when the camera is held to the eye to switch off the main screen and activate the EVF.

Another cherry on the specification cake is the fact that the ZS100 can record raw files as well as JPEGs. This sits well with the aperture priority, shutter priority and manual exposure modes that accompany the automated shooting options. Also, the shutter speed may be set to 60-1/2000 secs when the mechanical shutter is in use or 1-1/16000 secs with the electronic shutter. It should therefore be possible to freeze very fast movement and use the widest aperture in bright light.

Interestingly, although Wi-Fi connectivity is present, NFC technology is not – Panasonic says that this hasn't proved as widely used as expected. In terms of competition, the ZS100 goes up against the latest one-inch compact cameras from rivals Sony and Canon, including the RX100 IV and the G7 X Mark II – but neither feature such extensive zooms. Arguably, therefore, the ZS100 doesn't currently have any close competitors.

Build and handling

Solid metal construction

Black and Silver and Black finishes

Weighs 310g

One of the most exciting aspects of the ZS100 / TZ100 is that it's not a great deal bigger than the ZS60 / TZ80 announced at the same time. It's about 6mm (0.236 inches) thicker than the ZS60, plus 2.2mm (0.0866 inches) longer and 0.5mm (0.0197 inches) wider. That makes it just about small enough to slip in a jeans pocket and it has a metal body shell that feels solid enough to suggest it would survive being carried in that way over a long period of time.

The ZS100 looks fairly similar to the LX100, Panasonic's other current premium compact. It has fairly clean lines, along with a step in the top-plate. The camera will be available in black, or black and silver finishes, with the black and silver version having a red band around the small silver portion of the top-plate. This is a new styling for Panasonic, so it will be interesting to see if this appears elsewhere in the future.

On the front of the camera there's no texture or grip, but there's an indent which helps the camera to sit nicely in your hand. Nevertheless, it makes sense to attach the wrist strap to give an extra degree of security.

Almost all of the ZS100's buttons are grouped towards the right hand side of the camera, making it easy to use one-handed. On top of the camera are two large dials. One is an exposure mode dial which means you can quickly switch between shooting modes (there's a collection of automated and scene modes, along with more advanced program, aperture priority, shutter priority and manual options).

The second dial controls different functions depending on the shooting mode you're in. If you're working in aperture priority, you can use it to alter aperture, or shutter speed if in shutter priority. It's in a convenient position for your thumb and has a satisfying amount of stiffness when you turn it.

There's also a ring around the camera's lens which, again, has a different default function depending on the shooting mode. Both this and the dial on top of the camera can be customised to change something else if you prefer. There are also a further four function buttons (marked Fn), which each have default functions, but can be changed to suit a different purpose if you wish. There are five more "virtual" function buttons, which are accessed via the touchscreen and are also customisable.

The (physical) Fn3 button accesses the ZS100 / TZ100's quick menu by default. You can use this menu to move quickly between common settings, such as ISO, metering and white balance. By default, two of the function buttons are used to access the camera's 4K photo modes.

The ZS100's electronic viewfinder is ready for action at any time that the camera is powered up and it doesn't need to be popped out for use

Unlike the electronic viewfinder in Sony's popular RX100 III and RX100 IV compact cameras with 1-inch type sensors, the ZS100's electronic viewfinder is ready for action at any time that the camera is powered up and it doesn't need to be popped out for use. Furthermore, there's a sensor which automatically detects when the camera has been lifted to your eye to switch on the viewfinder, and switch the screen off. Although undoubtedly useful and a bonus on a pocketable compact camera, the ZS100's viewfinder is small, and while the image is clear and sharp, because of its small size it's unlikely you'll want to use the viewfinder for every shot.

The ZS100 / TZ100's screen is touch-sensitive, which means you can use it to set the focus point, simply tapping an area on the screen you want to use (if you have 1-Area focusing selected). You can also use it to navigate through and around the main menu and the function menu. If you don't like using touch screens, the good news is that everything can also be controlled by a physical button, or a combination of buttons, if you prefer.

In order to use the super fast shutter speeds that the electronic shutter facilitates, you'll need to change from mechanical shutter in the camera's main menu. Once you've done this, you can move past the 1/2000 fastest shutter speed offered by the mechanical shutter and reach speeds up to 1/16000.

Autofocus

49-point AF

Face/Eye detection

Post-focus function

Lumix cameras have always delivered the goods when it comes to AF speed, and the ZS100 / TZ100 is no different - in good light you can expect the camera to lock-on quickly with almost no delay.

Even when the light levels drop, the ZS100 performs very well, though the contrast-detect AF will start to struggle when light levels are really poor - but that's to be expected.

Performance

10fps burst shooting (6fps with continuous AF)

Decent optical quality

300 shot battery life

The ZS100 / TZ100's all-purpose metering system provides generally accurate exposures, only failing slightly when photographing something with areas of high contrast – but it's no more than we would expect from any camera. Similarly, the automatic white balance system copes well when faced with different lighting conditions. Slightly warmer tones are produced when photographing under artificial light, so if you're concerned with ultimate accuracy, either switch to a preset value or set a custom white balance.

Detail is kept well throughout the ZS100's optical zoom range, with roughly the same amount of detail at the far reach of the telephoto zoom as seen at the wide angle end.

The ability to shoot at 10 frames per second (fps) is pretty impressive, while even with it dropping down to 6fps when you want to use the ZS100's continuous AF is nothing to be sniffed at.

At 300 shots, battery life is reasonable, but if you're intending to use the viewfinder quite a bit, this does drop to 240 shots, so if you're going to be away for a long weekend or longer, then it might be worth thinking about investing in another battery.

Image quality

ISO125-12,800, expandable to 80-25,600

Can record plenty of detail

Pleasing images straight from camera

As the ZS100 / TZ100 uses the same sensor as the FZ1000, we had high hopes that image quality would be good. Happily, those hopes have been borne out both by results from our labs and real-world images.

JPEG images display a great amount of vibrance and punch, without straying too far into unrealistic territory, while the overall impression of detail is fantastic.

At normal printing (A4 or smaller) or on-screen viewing sizes, the ZS100's images, have detail comparable with shots taken on cameras with much larger sensors, such as the GF7 (which has a Four Thirds sensor). And at 100% on screen, despite a little smoothing, it's hard to tell the ZS100's low sensitivity JPEG images apart from the GF7's.

Our lab tests indicate that the ZS100 / TZ100 competes very strongly with the Sony RX100 IV and Canon G5 X, all of which have 1.0-inch type sensors

Our lab tests indicate that the ZS100 / TZ100 competes very strongly with the Sony RX100 IV and Canon G5 X, all of which have 1.0-inch type sensors. For signal to noise ratio, the ZS100 beats the other cameras on test throughout the ISO 100-800 range, and most significantly at ISO200. From ISO 1600, the ZS100 is extremely closely matched to the other cameras, while at ISO 3200, the ZS100 beats both the Sony and the Canon.

It's a slightly more complicated picture for the raw format files, where at the lower end of the scale (ISO100-200) the ZS100 is beaten by the Sony and Canon cameras, but from ISO800 right up to ISO12,800, it beats all of the other cameras on test.

For dynamic range, the story is also a little more patchy. For JPEG images taken at the lower end of the scale (ISO200-800), the ZS100 is beaten by the Canon and Sony, but is still pretty good. At 1600, the ZS100 is pretty much tied with the Sony and Canon, while at ISO3200, the Canon beats the ZS100 very slightly, but the ZS100 beats the Sony. At 6400, all of the cameras are closely matched, but at 12800, the ZS100 wins out more significantly.

Looking at the raw format files, performance is particularly impressive. Although at ISO200 it is beaten ever so slightly by the Canon, from ISO 400 the ZS100 beats the other cameras on test, at times by quite a significant margin.

In terms of resolution, we can use a combination of the labs test and the real world images to make a judgement on how well detail is resolved. At the low-medium end of the ISO run (ISO200-1600), the ZS100 is capable of matching Canon's G5 X sensor, and is slightly worse than Sony's RX100 IV. However, at the higher end of the spectrum (ISO3200-6400), it's better than Canon and matches the Sony's capability, while at 12,800, the ZS100 is the best performer.

Looking at a corresponding raw file, it's clear that the camera is applying a fair amount of noise reduction to JPEG images. While that noise reduction generally results in natural-looking, low-noise images, if you're photographing something particularly detailed, you may appreciate the ability to bring that back by editing the raw format files.

When all noise reduction is turned off, images taken at ISO3200 (see shot above) and 6400 have visible chroma noise at 100%, but it's fairly evenly spread throughout the image and therefore easily tackled by noise reduction software. Even without noise reduction being applied the images still look decent at normal printing and viewing sizes.

Using the electronic shutter allows you to shoot at wide apertures in bright sunlight – this image above has been taken with a 1/16000 sec shutter speed.

Although 1.0-inch sensors aren't particularly new or exciting any more, when you couple one with a 10x optical zoom, the resulting camera becomes a much more flexible option which is bound to appeal to travelling photographers looking for something high quality, but convenient.

The ZS100 / TZ100 produces lovely JPEG images, while the raw format images give you good scope to bring out extra detail should you need it. The sensor happily competes with Sony and Canon, who have so far been the big players in the 1.0-inch sensor market. The large sensor facilitates decent low-light shooting, making it a good all-rounder camera.

It's also an enjoyable camera to use, with a good number of buttons and dials, a very responsive touch sensitive screen and an (albeit small) electronic viewfinder. There's also inbuilt Wi-Fi and a range of creative filters. It would perhaps have been nice to see a tilting or articulating screen, but that may have added extra bulk, and certainly extra cost to the camera.

Panasonic claims that it has created a new segment of the market with this camera, and it's hard to disagree with that claim.

Competition

]]>Sony Alpha A5000 reviewhttp://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/digital-slrs-hybrids/sony-a5000-review-1212964/review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/digital-slrs-hybrids/sony-a5000-review-1212964/reviewSmall on size, but feature-rich the Alpha A5000 promises to deliver the goods.Wed, 13 Dec 2017 09:18:00 +0000techradar.comThe Sony Alpha A5000 was the fourth compact system camera from Sony to appear after the company decided to drop its NEX name for E-mount cameras. Instead it uses the Alpha brand, often shortened simply to "A".

[Update: The Sony Alpha A5000 was launched at the start of 2014 and has since been superseded by the A5100, while higher models in the Alpha range have since become more competitively priced. A good entry-level option, but if your budget will stretch to it, you'd be better off with the 24MP Alpha A6000.]

The first model was the Sony a3000, an entry-level camera with a DSLR like design, more akin to the A-mount entry-level Alphas offered by the next company. The next two were the Alpha 7 and Alpha7R, two high-end, full-frame cameras.

Sony refreshes its range of compact system cameras, especially those at the lower – middle end of the ranges, roughly every 12 months. The a5000 was announced at CES and is a replacement for the NEX-3N. It sits below the NEX-5T, which is yet to be replaced, and the A6000, the camera which now sits at the top end of Sony's enthusiast APS-C range.

Whereas the A7 and A7R are aimed at enthusiast and professional photographers, the a5000 joins the a3000 at the entry-level end of the line-up. This camera however takes the familiar NEX shape we've been used to for some time now, with a flat, compact (body only) design.

That's not to say it doesn't feature some of the features from those cameras higher up in the range. Inside the Sony Alpha a5000 is an APS-C format Exmor APS HD CMOS sensor with 20.1 million effective pixels and the same Bionz X processor as found in the A7, A7R and the recently announced A6000.

This combination allows sensitivity to be set up to ISO 16,000, but the maximum continuous shooting rate is more modest at just 2.5fps, or 3.5fps in Speed Priority Continuous shooting mode.

Although aimed at novices, the Alpha 5000 has advanced exposure modes (program, aperture priority, shutter priority and manual) in addition to iAuto, Superior Auto, Scene selection and Sweep panorama for less experienced photographers. This means that users have room to grow as they learn about the camera.

Picture effects

There are also 13 Picture Effects such as High Contrast Monochrome, Toy Camera and HDR Painting that can be applied to JPEG images. Raw files can also be recorded, but not at the same time as using the Picture Effects.

There is no viewfinder on the A5000, but the 3-inch 460,000-dot LCD screen is a tilting unit that can be tipped up through 180 degrees to help when shooting selfies. It's worth noting that there is also no hotshoe or accessories port, so you can't add any external accessories to the camera.

In addition, NFC and Wi-Fi technology is on-board, with the former allowing quick connections to be made to NFC mobile devices such as Android smartphones and tablets.

The Wi-Fi connectivity enables Sony's PlayMemories Camera Apps to be downloaded to the A5000 to add extra functionality. These include options such as Direct Upload that enables images to be uploaded to Facebook, PlayMemories Online or Flickr; Smart Remote Control that enables the camera to be controlled by a phone or tablet; and Time Lapse to enable easy time lapse movie creation.

The a5000 is billed as the world's smallest APS-C sized interchangeable lens camera. It's not as small as the tiny Panasonic GM1, but that has a smaller (in comparison to APS-C), Micro Four Thirds sensor. The a5000 competes with other entry-level compact system cameras such as the Samsung NX2000, Panasonic GF6 and Olympus PEN E-PM2.

The a5000 is very similar in size, style and shape to the NEX-3N, which it replaces. Although the camera is in the flat, compact style of other NEX CSCs, it has a chunky grip which is textured and feels very secure in the hand. With heavy cameras, it's fairly unlikely that you'll often be using it one handed, but the a5000 is very light, so there's a good chance you might – in which case that chunky grip really makes it feel steady.

Additionally, almost all of the buttons on the a5000 are grouped on the right hand side of the camera, making them easy to reach with the thumb, again a good indicator that the camera is designed to be used one handed.

On top of the camera, around the shutter release button, is a switch for turning the camera on and off. There's also a zoom lever which you can use when a power zoom lens is mounted to the camera, such as the 16-50mm kit lens – you can also use a switch on this lens itself if you prefer. The zoom lever on the top of the camera is also used for zooming into images in playback to check focus.

Also on top of the camera (but at an angle so as to not accidentally knock it) is a dedicated movie record button. The only button not to be grouped on the right hand side of the camera is the button which is pressed to lift the flash, which can be found on the left hand side of the camera, next to the pop-up flash unit.

On the back of the camera is the tilting LCD screen. This is neither touch screen, nor fully articulated. It only tilts up, which makes it useful for shooting from above, or for self portraits (it tilts so far as to fully face the front); but for shooting from above, or portrait format images, it's less useful.

As with most other Sony cameras, many of the buttons on the back of the camera can be customised to the settings you use most often, which is useful. There is a dial which doubles up as a four-way navigational pad, each of the directional keys here can be customised, as well as the button in the centre of the pad.

There's also another button in the bottom right of the camera, which has a question mark on it, which can be set to a particular function.

As there's no dial anywhere on the camera to switch between different shooting modes, such as aperture priority, fully automatic, manual and scene modes, this can be done in one of two ways. You can either navigate to Shoot Mode in the main menu (via the menu button), or you can set one of the custom buttons to quickly access Shoot Mode.

The scrolling dial on the back of the camera is used for altering aperture or shutter speed, depending on the mode you're shooting in. If you're shooting in fully manual, you'll need to press the down directional key (set to exposure compensation by default) to switch between the two parameters. If you're shooting in shutter priority or aperture priority, press the down key to access exposure compensation then use the dial again to dial in or down however much compensation you need.

Autofocus

Setting the autofocus point, as we've found with other Sony cameras, can be frustratingly laborious. There's no dedicated button for changing the autofocus point, but you can set one of the focus buttons to change the Focus Area, after which you'll be able to move around the screen to the point you require.

There seems to be no quicker way to do this, and it's a little annoying when you want to quickly move the spot. A touchscreen here would have made this very easy – but Sony seems very resistant to using this technology on all of its cameras. We'd recommend if you're looking for speed, setting the autofocus point to the centre and focusing and recomposing, only changing the autofocus point if you have the time (or inclination).

Sony has decided to simplify its menu systems across the range, so the NEX menu of old is no more – something which we're pleased about since that was a little confusing at times. Instead, the menu here is similar to those found on Alpha DSLRs, and will be the menu found on all Sony cameras from here on in.

This menu is sensibly laid out, being split up into different areas, such as camera settings, custom settings, playback and setup. It doesn't take long to get used to, and it's worth exploring the setup for some time to get used to the layout.

All of Sony's recent cameras have impressed us a lot when it comes to image quality. Generally speaking, some of the quirks of handling are usually more than made up for by the fact that image quality is so good.

Happily, the a5000 has proven itself to be no different. Once again, images contain lots of fine detail, while colours are beautifully saturated.

We were similarly impressed by images from the NEX-3N, and saw no reason why the a5000 would be any worse. In fact, including the latest Bionx X processor, should have a positive impact on results.

Bionz X processor

One of the benefits of the Bionz X processor is a reduction in noise when shooting at higher sensitivities. At ISO 800, noise is controlled very well, while lots of detail is kept. A small degree of image smoothing can be seen at the lower end of the sensitivity scale, while this increases as you move through the ISO range.

At ISO 3200, noise is apparent when zooming in to 100% - some areas of an image start to have a painterly effect, but, when viewing images at normal printing or web sizes, such as A4 or below, images are very good and more than acceptable to use. We'd happily use up to ISO 3200 for any images that weren't going to be printed at a very large size.

The automatic white balance setting is very good, producing accurate colours even under artificial lighting in the majority of instanceswe used it. You can alter the specific setting if you find it's not quite matching up to the correct whites, but we found that this wasn't necessary most of the time.

It's great to see accuracy in this area, where previous cameras tended to err towards orange or warm tones under artificial lights. Similarly, all-purpose metering does a good job in the majority of conditions in helping to produce a well-balanced exposure.

Although the A5000 doesn't claim speeds as quick as its more advanced stablemate, the A6000, or indeed Micro Four Thirds cameras, it is still pretty quick to focus, especially in good light. Focusing speeds drop a little in lower light, sometimes hunting around for a while before locking on, but it's rare for a false focus to be presented.

The kit lens supplied with the A5000 is a 16-50mm PZ lens which we have seen before on other models including the 3N and the 5T. It's a decent all-round performer, offering a flexible focal length that will suit a good variety of subjects. Even though the maximum aperture of this lens is f/3.5 you can still get some nice shallow depth of field effects, thanks to the camera's large sensor.

Sony has some good additional lenses in its line-up, and while that number isn't quite as large as the number of proprietary Micro Four Thirds optics, there are quite a few useful additions.

During this test we also used a 50mm f/1.8 lens, which is great for shallow depth of field effects, portraits, or if you're shooting in low light, and would make a good second lens. We also used a 30mm f/3.5 macro lens, which is good for shots which require a lot of detail, such as still life.

A number of digital filters, such as Toy Camera, can be found on the A5000, which are worth experimenting with. It's a shame that you can't shoot these in raw format, so if you decide that you don't like the filter down the line, then you'll be stuck with it. If you want to be a little more flexible, then you can choose different Creative Styles. These allow you to shoot in raw format, and include settings such as Monochrome, Vivid and Portrait.

As part of our image quality testing for the Sony A5000 review, we've shot our resolution chart. These images were captured using a full-production sample of the camera.

JPEG signal to noise ratio

In this graph we can see that the A5000 puts in a relatively consistent performance which is pretty closely matched with the Panasonic GF6 and the Olympus PEN E-PM2. It is the Fuji X-A1 which really storms ahead here though, producing better results, by quite some margin, at every sensitivity setting.

Raw signal to noise ratio

For the raw (after conversion to TIFF) files, it's a similar story here, with the A5000 putting in a decent performance. It is however beaten by the Panasonic GF6 and Olympus PEN E-PM2at the same sensitivities. At the very lowest sensitivity (ISO 100), it is almost exactly tied with the Fuji X-A1, but the Fuji takes over from ISO 400 and above.

JPEG dynamic range

For dynamic range, the Sony A5000 puts in a good performance in JPEG files across the sensitivity range. It is beaten by the Olympus PEN E-PM2 at every sensitivity, but it comfortably beats the Fuji X-A1, which has a much flatter dynamic range. In the Fuji's defence, this type of graph is borne out by warmly saturated, pleasing to the eye images, whereas the Sony's are more accurate.

RAW dynamic range

In terms of the raw files (after conversion to TIFF), the A5000 is very closely matched with the X-A1, demonstrating the processing that Fuji cameras apply to its JPEG images. This suggests that colours from the A5000 are very natural and true to life, something which I have found to be true in real-world testing. It is however the Olympus PEN E-PM2 which steals the show here, beating all of the cameras on test by a considerable amount, at every sensitivity.

Creative Styles allow you to experiment with a different look for your images, without losing the ability to shoot in raw format. If you decide you want a colour version down the line, you'll be able to rescue it from the raw file.

There is a good range of lenses available for the Sony E mount. Since Sony has removed the NEX branding from its E-mount range of cameras, be careful which type of lens you're buying. This was shot with a 30mm f/3.5 macro lens.

If you want to boost the saturation of images, you can alter Picture Styles to up the contrast. This has the advantage of being able to be shot in raw format, meaning you can view a "clean" version of the image.

Sony has been making cameras for long enough to know what its doing, and it hasn't produced any duds in some time. The a5000 joins the list as another reliable, solidly built compact system camera which will particularly appeal to beginner cameras.

It's ideally pitched at those looking for their first interchangeable lens camera, while its size and body shape make it likely to appeal to those who are stepping up from a mobile phone or compact camera.

The a5000 is capable of producing some great quality images which are packed with detail, are great at high sensitivities and have beautiful, warm colours. The kit lens is a decent performer, while the lens range for Sony E-mount cameras is good, and growing, so it's a system you can buy into and grow with.

On the one hand, it's true that Sony puts a lot of thought into the way that people want to use its cameras, with options to customise buttons being a welcome one. On the other hand, some options are just that little bit more difficult than they should be. It shouldn't be so fiddly to change the autofocus point for instance.

We feel like we're repeatedly banging the same drum here, but a touchscreen would make this operation so much easier. Given that this camera is aimed at beginners who are probably used to touchscreens and Sony has this technology at its disposal, it's pretty disappointing that it chooses not to include one on its cameras.

It's nice though that the camera includes a tilting screen. As it only tilts up, it's not particularly useful for several angles, but for users who want to take self-portraits or shoot video, it is helpful.

There's plenty here to appeal to the creative photographer, with a range of digital filters being particularly appealing. It's also nice to have a panoramic mode, and Creative Styles for when you want to shoot in raw format. Again though, it's disappointing that digital filters can only be shot in JPEG only, not least because you'll need to dive into the menu and switch raw shooting off when you want to use them.

If you can possibly stretch to the extra cash, then the NEX-5T might be a wiser investment for those who might want something a little more advanced in the future. Not only does it produce great images, but it also has a touchscreen and an accessories port if you did want to attach a viewfinder or external flash.

We liked

This camera's small size is its headline feature, and Sony has done a good job of miniaturising to make a very small APS-C format camera. Although it's not as small as the Panasonic GM1, the sensor size is also significantly larger, so that's worth bearing in mind. The kit lens also retracts into itself, making the overall package small enough to fit in a large jacket pocket, and very neatly into a kit bag.

We disliked

Although this is an entry-level camera, it would be nice if Sony gave a little bit more for your money at this end of the range. While we appreciate that adding a touchscreen potentially bumps up the cost, it would make some of the frustrations of using the camera virtually non-existent. That aside, images are great, so if you can live with some of those quirks, or you're not the kind of user that is changing settings all that frequently, it is a good buy.

Final Verdict

Another decent, well performing camera from Sony here. The A5000 is a good buy for those looking for their first compact system camera, offering a decent range of options for both beginners and those who are a little more experienced.

]]>Detu Twin 360-degree camerahttp://www.techradar.com/reviews/detu-twin-360-degree-camera
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/detu-twin-360-degree-cameraThis entry-level effort puts price before performance, but it should appeal to social media addicts new to 360 video.Mon, 11 Dec 2017 15:28:48 +0000techradar.comWill the 360-degree video format ever really catch on? The jury's still out, and it probably hinges on the extent to which virtual reality headsets take off. Realizing that videographers are hesitant about spending big money on 360-degree gear, Detu has come out with the Twin, a simple and affordable 360-degree camera aimed at casual users looking to capture footage that's a bit different to upload to social media.

At around $180 / £200 / AU$275 the Twin is much more affordable than its closest competitor, the Ricoh Theta S, but that low price does set the alarm bells ringing. Can a 360-degree camera really deliver the goods at this price point?

Features

Let's not pretend the Detu Twin is anything other than an attempt to undercut the very similar-looking Ricoh Theta S, one of the more successful – and certainly one of the simplest – 360 cameras around.

It's got the same dual f/2.0 fisheye lenses that record video at 30fps, although while its rival manages Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) from each camera, the Detu Twin takes that down to a stretched HD-ready 1440 x 720 pixels, which isn't that much when you're filming a 360-degree landscape.

The Detu Twin establishes its own Wi-Fi Direct network to which you can connect a phone or tablet for the purposes of remote operation, video/photo uploads to a phone or to Facebook or YouTube, and – an upcoming feature not available at the time of this review – livestreaming to those same social sites.

Design

Like the Ricoh Theta S, the Detu Twin is designed to be held in one hand. The two lenses are arranged on either side of the top of the device, with the standby and Wi-Fi buttons on one side.

It's a slightly flawed design; during operation it's too easy to switch off the Detu Twin while recording a video. However, the actual record button is a thumb-friendly design on the product's front. When you hold it down it lights up and makes a noise as recording begins, although when you're outdoors it's very easy not to see or hear these all-important notifications.

After seeing so many 360° cameras that can only be used while mounted on a phone – essentially limiting them to being used only for novelty selfies – it's a relief to see that the Detu Twin has a standard tripod thread on its base.

This unleashes some creative options, as you don't have to be in the video yourself (a 'set and forget' approach to 360-degree cameras is, in our opinion, one of the format's most appealing uses). So not only can the Detu Twin be used with any tripod and thus be positioned anywhere, but a selfie stick can be used to give it some height, and to keep the user out of shot.

Alongside the tripod thread on the bottom of the camera are a small microphone and a mini HDMI output for linking the Detu Twin to a TV. It's also great to see a microSD card slot under a flap on the side, which can accept cards up to 64GB. Alongside that is a micro USB slot for recharging.

Performance

The Detu Twin is easy to use, but provides only a short-lived experience. Despite being fully charged, our review sample failed to make it through a day of sporadic use. In total we managed just over 15 minutes of footage, which isn't much at all, although it's not much less than the Ricoh Theta S's 25 minutes.

Sadly the Twin can't be used while it's charging, although it would make sense to carry a portable power pack with you if you're out for the day, so that you can recharge the camera when you're not shooting with it.

The 360 videos and JPEGs produced by the Detu Twin are of basic quality. Those 3040 x 1520 pixels – technically a 3K resolution – are stretched a long way, and the camera's MP4 files often blurry and blocky, although at least they're reasonably colorful.

The Twin works best when subjects are relatively close to the camera. It's also wise to make sure the main subjects – especially if they're people – are in full view of one or other of the lenses to avoid an odd-looking effect they won't thank you for; the parallax stitching that the Detu Twin performs in-camera is actually very good, but it's not quite perfect, although the line is barely noticeable on backgrounds (partly because of the low resolution video).

App

Initially the app impresses. We were quickly able to connect to the Detu Twin's Wi-Fi network to edit and share videos from an iPhone, and it's also possible to monitor and operate the camera remotely via the app.

During our tests we had some issues sustaining a connection to the Twin, although after installing the camera's latest firmware we were able to start and finish video recording solely via the app without any stalls or drop-outs.

The app itself is mostly impressive. It’s easy enough to transfer files to a phone, or to share them online, with various format options ranging from 'tiny planet’ to flat panorama.

However, we found the 30-second sharing limit on videos, which wasn't obvious at the outset, extremely irritating. In practice a 31-second video can be uploaded, but no more, which leaves any longer footage largely useless.

Verdict

While it can't match the Ricoh Theta S for image quality, the far more affordable Detu Twin is nevertheless a decent entry-level product that would suit someone wanting to tip their toes into the world of 360 video.

It's easy to use and fun to experiment with, and its tripod/selfie stick thread opens up a lot of creative possibilities. However, the basic video quality, the 30-second limit on shared videos, and the super-short battery life (take a portable power pack) mean the Detu Twin can't be regarded as much more than a novelty camera.

This is TechRadar's review summary, which gives you all the key information you need if you're looking for quick buying advice in 30 seconds – our usual full, in-depth review follows.

The Fujifilm X-A3 is a great camera with a vintage-ish look that produces consistently good images.

Designed as step-up from both a smartphone and a point-and-shoot compact, this entry-level mirrorless camera is reasonably priced, and reasonably easy to get to know, while images can be quickly transferred to a phone via the basic, but comprehensive and reliable, Fujifilm Camera Remote app.

Fujifilm is clearly aiming this advanced camera at those who love taking photos, but who are aware that most of the best snaps they see on Instagram are taken with a 'proper' camera rather than a phone. Hence the attempt to woo the vain with a 180-degree tilting LCD screen and a mostly-effective 'smile' mode that takes a photo if it detects a cheeky grin. Ditto its dozens of Instagram-style filters and best-in-class Film Simulation modes.

Despite these everyman features though, the X-A3's user interface is as retro as its exterior, and will present something of a learning curve for beginners.

There's no built-in electronic viewfinder (you'll have to pay a bit more for something like the Fujifilm X-E3 if you want one), but if you're the kind of photographer who doesn't mind composing their shots on an LCD screen, the X-A3's is pretty good; it's colorful and contrasty, with a wide viewing angle.

Any photo taken on the X-A3 will indeed look much better than a phone can manage, but full creative control isn't as easy as on a DSLR, if that's what you're after. This is certainly a camera aimed at those looking for good-quality photos without getting bogged down in photography basics.

Reasonably small and lightweight, easy to use and – most importantly – supplying reliably detailed and colorful, clean images, the Fujifilm X-A3 has very few annoyances and is a likeable, dependable and good-value camera, with a capable 16-50mm kit lens.

Who's it for and should I buy it?

Fujifilm is clearly aiming this advanced compact at those who love taking photos – including plenty of selfies – and who are ready to make the jump from their smartphone to a 'proper' camera.

However, despite the X-A3 not being exceptionally complicated to operate, it's still a lot to take on for the average 'phoneographer'. Persevere though, and you'll be rewarded with colorful and detailed images that are a huge leap forward from those taken on your smartphone.

Fujifilm X-A3 price

Current price: £479 / $549 / AU$949 with 16-50mm lens

A good value mirrorless camera that's all about the images

APS-C CMOS sensor, 24.2MP

JPEG and raw files

16-50mm kit lens

For a relatively compact camera, the Fujifilm X-A3 features a large sensor – it's a 24.2MP APS-C sensor, similar in size to those in many DSLRs. While the resolution is identical to that offered by its more expensive siblings like the X-E3, X-T20 and X-T2, there's a subtle difference in the actual design of the sensor. Rather than getting Fujifilm's X-Trans technology, the chip here gets a more standard primary color filter design, and while there's nothing wrong with that per se, it won't quite be a match for its premium siblings in the image quality stakes.

The X-A3 has a native ISO range of 200 to 6400, which is expandable up to ISO25,600 if necessary, though we'd avoid using this other than as a last resort. The autofocus system is generally impressive, if not the quietest.

The camera comes with an XC16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 OIS II lens as standard, which is versatile enough to suit most for everyday photography. However, the beauty of the mirrorless camera genre – aside from the reasonably lightweight, travel-ready form-factor – is the option to swap-out lenses, and, equipped with a standard Fujifilm X Series lens mount, the X-A3 is compatible with more than 30 different lenses.

Unlike models higher up the Fujifilm range, the X-A3 can't shoot video in 4K, just Full HD. That's just as well, as the often-slow X-A3 certainly doesn't have the processing power to handle 4K.

Retro design meets solid and simple handling

Lightweight at just 339g

180-degree tilting touchscreen

Faux-leather exterior finishes

As with most Fujifilm cameras, there's a touch of retro about the X-A3. Our review sample came in a two-tone brown faux leather and metallic finish (it's also available with black or pink faux leather), and while there are some aluminium parts (including the front cover, top plate and top dials), it does have quite a plasticky feel.

On the right-hand side of the camera is a rigid flap covering a micro USB slot via which you recharge the X-A3 (which we find preferable to a battery charging cradle) alongside a micro HDMI output. The undercarriage holds a compartment for the battery (rated at 410 shots) and a SD card slot.

There's a fairly standard menu system that will be easy enough to master for DSLR owners, but likely off-putting to anyone upgrading from a smartphone

The X-A3's physical controls are limited, both by the size of the body and the camera's ambitions. On the front of the camera, next to the lens, is a tiny dial for toggling between single, continuous and manual shooting, while the back contains shortcuts to autofocus, timer, burst shooting and white balance settings.

There's a fairly standard menu system that will be easy enough to master for DSLR owners, but likely off-putting to anyone upgrading from a smartphone (there are eight pages of multi-screen lists).

There are also buttons to initiate video recording, which is always helpful, and the usual 'quick menu' button for accessing oft-needed tweaks such as ISO, white balance and aspect ratio. A dial on the top of the camera is required to toggle through everything, and using this becomes second nature pretty quickly, while a second dial proved useful for manually adjusting exposure.

The X-A3's LCD screen with 180-degree tilt presents some nifty usability options. For example, you can use the X-A3 to take selfies by turning the LCD screen 180-degrees and pulling it up slightly so that you can see your entire mug (albeit upside-down, but it's enough for framing purposes). Its 'smile mode' for selfies works really well, although in our tests it was also triggered by some random inanimate objects that definitely weren't smiling.

The more serious photographer will appreciate that flip-up screen making it easier to shoot over the heads of crowds, or to get down close to the floor and take shots from unusual angles without having to kneel/lie on the ground.

In our tests with an iPhone the Fujifilm Camera Remote app worked reasonably well; it allowed us to remotely operate the camera and make manual adjustments (most obviously to ISO and exposure compensation), and consistently maintained a connection over Wi-Fi.

It's pretty much a one-page app, and when trying to escape from the remote viewing page the app always wants to disconnect from the camera, although despite this quirk we were able to transfer a batch of images successfully several times in a row.

Image quality

Images have decent levels of detail

Film Simulation modes are great

Panoramic mode

Although we had a few different lens options for this review, we mainly used the 16-50mm kit lens that most buyers will get. This is restricted to f/3.5-5.6 aperture, but proved a good general-purpose lens in our tests.

It features a built-in anti-shake system, and handheld shots impressed, with autofocus working well (though its constant beeps and whirs get annoying). Touchscreen focusing is also possible, though it's best avoided if you want maximum sharpness.

In another nod to the Instagram generation, the X-A3 has a decent selection of artistic filters. There are 10, including Nostalgic (to who?) Toy Camera, Miniature, which adds graduated blurring to give scenes the appearance of table-top models, and a Fisheye distortion effect. In addition you get Fujifilm's excellent Film Simulation modes, which provide more subtle and satisfying results, with 11 options to choose from.

The X-A3 does have a few other 'novelty' modes, and for the most part they work well. Hidden in the Advanced Filter menus is a Panoramic drag-and-drop mode, which makes a very loud fake shutter noise (the volume of which can be turned down), and produces a fairly soft image. There are also a plethora of selfie modes.

The panoramic mode is easy to use and delivers pretty good results

Not convinced? Try these

If the Fujifilm X-A3 mirrorless camera isn’t for you, here are three excellent alternatives for you to consider...

]]>Sony Alpha A7R III reviewhttp://www.techradar.com/reviews/sony-alpha-a7r-iii-review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/sony-alpha-a7r-iii-reviewSony's new Alpha A7R III could be one of the best mirrorless cameras we've seen.Thu, 30 Nov 2017 16:50:30 +0000techradar.comThe Alpha A7R III is Sony's latest high-resolution mirrorless camera, and an update of the excellent Alpha A7R II, which was responsible for tempting many a photographer away from the comfort of their Canon and Nikon DSLRs.

This latest model looks to draw on many of the technologies used in the speed-orientated Sony Alpha A9, which is just as well, because with the likes of Nikon's brilliant D850 offering a tempting combination of high resolution and high performance the Alpha A7R II was beginning to look a little pedestrian.

With some impressive boosts to performance, as well as tweaks to handling and the peace of mind of a five-year guarantee, could the new Alpha A7R III see even more second-hand Canon and Nikon DSLRs appearing on the shelves of camera stores as more photographers make the switch to Sony?

Features

Full-frame stacked CMOS sensor, 42.2MP

3,686K-dot electronic viewfinder with 100fps refresh rate

3.0-inch tilt-angle screen, 1,440,000 dots

While many might have expected Sony to boost the amount of pixels to match or exceed DSLR rivals like the D850 and Canon EOS 5DS, it's actually opted to stick with the same count as the Alpha A7R II.

At the core of the A7R III then is a 42.2MP back-illuminated full-frame Exmor R CMOS sensor, although Sony has borrowed some of the innovations from the 24.2MP Alpha A9 and integrated them with this more densely populated chip.

There are gapless microlenses and a new anti-flare coating for starters, while the Alpha A7R III features a new front-end LSI that almost doubles the readout speed of the sensor. It also takes advantage of the latest BIONZ X image processing engine, and combined, these enhancements deliver a boost of up to 1.8x in processing speeds compared to the A7R II.

The A7R III's sensitivity range remains unchanged (ISO50-102,400 at the camera's expanded setting), so those hoping for something to match the Nikon D850's expanded ISO32 setting may be a little disappointed. However, the new processing engine should be able to handle image noise better than its predecessor, while Sony also claims the Alpha A7R III will have a staggering 15-stop dynamic range at low sensitivity settings.

The Alpha A7R III has the same electronic viewfinder (EVF) as the Alpha A9, with the Quad-VGA OLED EVF sporting a resolution of approximately 3,686k dots, and utilizing a Zeiss T* Coating to reduce reflections. On top of this, the A7R III supports a customizable frame rate for the EVF, with options of either 60fps or 120fps, again matching the 120fps offered by the A9.

Along with the EVF, the rear tilt-angle display has also been upgraded over the outgoing model; it now has a resolution of 1.44 million dots, and, just as we've seen with recent models like the RX10 IV, offers touchscreen functionality.

Also as with the A9, Sony has shunned the XQD card format (even though it's now the sole manufacturer of that format), instead opting for dual SD card slots on the Alpha A7R III, with only one of those supporting UHS-II type cards.

The Alpha A7R III offers 4K (3840 x 2160 pixels) video capture, with the option to use either the full width of the sensor or Super 35mm format mode, with the latter using the full pixel readout without pixel binning to collect 5K of information, and oversampling this to produce what promises to be even crisper footage.

As well as this, the Alpha A7R III now features a new HLG (Hybrid Log-Gamma) profile that supports an Instant HDR workflow, allowing HDR (HLG) compatible TVs to play back 4K HDR footage, while both S-Log2 and S-Log3 are also available.

If you want to shoot Full HD footage you can capture this at up to 120fps, while there are ports for both a microphone and audio monitoring.

Build and handling

The look and feel of the Sony Alpha A7R III broadly follows the design of the A7R II, but there are a host of tweaks and refinements when you start looking a little closer.

While the new camera doesn't get the dedicated drive mode dial/focus mode selector that sits to the left of the EVF on the Alpha A9, it does get a similar multi-selector joystick.

It may seem a small thing, but the arrival of the joystick greatly improves handling over the A7R II, as it makes for much quicker AF point selection. The A7R III also sees the addition of a dedicated AF-ON button for back-button focusing, again as on the A9.

In fact, the rear of the camera mimics the control layout of the A9 – that means the A7R III gets an additional 'C3' custom button, while the rear scrollwheel is more pronounced, and less likely to be accidentally knocked.

The changes may be modest, but they combine to make the A7R III that much more user-friendly and satisfying to shooting with

The rear touch display, meanwhile, does away with an annoying quirk of the A7R II. If you were shooting from the waist with the screen angled outward, the older camera would think you had the camera raised to your eye, resulting in the feed being cut on the screen. The display on the A7R III disables the eye sensor when the screen is flipped out, allowing you to shoot at waist level uninterrupted.

The body is slightly thicker than the A7R II, but fractionally slimmer than the A9, and features a magnesium alloy top, front and rear covers, as well as an internal frame. Sony has also increased the number of lens mount screws to six for enhanced durability, while all major buttons and dials are sealed, and there's sealing throughout the body, to protect the A7R III from dust and moisture.

The menu system has also been overhauled. Now color-coded, it's that bit easier to navigate, but the menu system on the Alpha A7R III is still incredibly comprehensive. That said, once you've tailored the various custom buttons to your desired settings, these, along with the body-mounted controls, mean there should be little need to be regularly diving into the main menu. When you do though, give yourself a bit of time to find exactly what you're looking for.

The changes may be modest, but they combine to make the A7R III that much more user-friendly and satisfying to shoot with.

Autofocus

399 phase-detection points

425 contrast-detection points

Eye AF with enhanced tracking performace

Sony has improved the focusing system as well. The 399 focal-plane phase-detection AF points from the A7R II remain (with 68% coverage of the frame), but Sony has bolstered the number of contrast-detection AF points from 25 to 400.

Sony reckons this overhaul should improve autofocus speed, delivering up to roughly two times faster speeds in low-light conditions, along with improved AF tracking performance.

The Alpha A7R III can also focus in brightness levels as low as -3EV. When you consider that's pretty much complete darkness, it's very impressive, although the D850's central AF point just edges it at -4EV.

As we've seen on other Sony mirrorless cameras, there's a wide range of autofocus settings. Wide or Zone modes are good for general photography and will take care of much of the decision-making for you, while Center mode uses the central AF point.

There’s also a Flexible Spot mode (with the choice of three AF area sizes) that enables you to use the joystick to position the focus area pretty much anywhere in the frame, while the Expanded Flexible Spot mode takes advantage of additional AF points to assist with focusing.

Focusing is fast in single servo mode, but it's when you flick the focusing over to continuous that the system really impressives. You get the same focusing modes as before, but with the addition of a Lock-on setting – use this mode and you'll find the Alpha A7R III can do a stunning job of tracking your designated subject as it moves round the frame.

The Alpha A7R III's Eye AF has also been enhanced, and now uses the same autofocus algorithms as the Alpha 9. This means that when the A7R III is in AF-C mode and with Eye-AF activated, the system should be able to continuously track and focus on your subject's eye, even if they look down or away from the camera.

In our time with the camera this really impressed us. The A7R III managed to happily maintain focus on a subject in two challenging scenarios – while they were moving round the frame quickly as well as moving towards us, or looking down or away from the camera.

Performance

10fps burst shooting

5-axis image stabilization

530-shot battery life

While the A7R II could only manage 5fps burst shooting, the enhanced processing power inside the Alpha A7R III sees that rate double to 10fps, and that's with continuous AF/AE tracking. It can sustain this for up to 76 JPEG/raw images, or 28 uncompressed 14-bit raws.

You have the option of using the A7R III's mechanical shutter to achieve this, or if you prefer you can opt for the camera's electronic shutter for silent shooting. And, rather than having to wait while the camera writes large quantities of images to the card, it's still possible to use many of the A7R III's key functions.

The Alpha A7R III is kitted out with Sony's 5-axis optical image stabilization system, and this has been tweaked for the new camera to deliver a 5.5-stop shutter speed advantage, improving on the A7R II's 4.5-stop system. To reduce the risk of vibration and image blur, especially when shooting at 10fps, there's a new low-vibration shutter mechanism.

You can expect the A7R III to carry on shooting for 530 frames

The electronic viewfinder is excellent, with a clear and large view thanks to the fast refresh rate and 3,686k-dot resolution, while the rear display doesn't disappoint either.

One of the biggest complaints levelled at the A7R II was its poor battery life, with just 270 shots possible if you were lucky. Sony has swapped out the W-series battery used in that camera and replaced it with its latest Z-series unit, and you can expect the A7R III to carry on shooting for 530 shots if you use the viewfinder, or 650 shots using the rear display. It's a welcome improvement, but still some way behind the likes of the Nikon D850's 1,840-shot rating.

Image quality

ISO100-32,000, expandable to 50-102,400

15-stop dynamic range

14-bit raw shooting

The Alpha A7R III is able to resolve an impressive level of detail; you'd be hard-pushed to distinguish between its images and those from the more densely populated sensors on the 45.2MP Nikon D850 and 50MP Canon EOS 5DS. At the end of the day, if you're planning to produce large A2 sized prints, you won't be disappointed with the files from the Alpha A7R III.

Noise control is another area in which the Alpha A7R III is very strong. Noise levels are kept well within acceptable limits, delivering pleasing results with natural-looking granular noise and minimal Chroma (color) noise even when you're shooting at the higher end of the native sensitivity range (up to ISO32,000). As with most cameras, we'd avoid resorting to the high expansion settings (the maximum here is ISO102,400) unless getting a shot is more important than its ultimate quality.

The Alpha A7R III's dynamic range performance is also very impressive. If you're shooting at low sensitivities and purposefully underexposing the shot to retain highlights, you'll have to really push the file in post-processing before you see any signs of quality beginning to deteriorate in the shadows. For general editing of raw files where you want to recover detail, you've got plenty of flexibility with the A7R III's files.

Verdict

If Nikon thought it was going to have things all its own way with the D850, it should think again. Sony has taken one of our favorite mirrorless cameras and bolstered the performance to make the new Alpha A7R III a much more capable and well-rounded offering.

As we've seen with the D850, you no longer have to sacrifice performance for resolution or vice versa. The heady mix of 42.2MP and high performance that includes 10fps burst shooting and a very sophisticated AF system is bound to help this camera appeal to an even broader range of photographers than the older model. This is a camera that would be equally at home perched on a mountain as in a studio or on the sidelines of a football match.

For now, the Alpha A7R III is not only the most well-rounded mirrorless camera you can buy, but one of the best cameras out there.

Competition

]]>Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark III reviewhttp://www.techradar.com/reviews/canon-powershot-g1-x-mark-iii-review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/canon-powershot-g1-x-mark-iii-reviewWith an APS-C sized sensor and a zoom lens, the PowerShot G1 X Mark III is a truly unique compact camera.Wed, 29 Nov 2017 16:33:49 +0000techradar.comThe Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark III is the latest in a long line of enthusiast-focused compact cameras, designed for photographers looking for something to complement their DSLR, or for those looking for a versatile alternative to a DSLR in a relatively compact body.

The original PowerShot G1 was launched in 2000, and for a while that camera and its successors were the obvious choice when it came to choosing an enthusiast compact.

But with rivals like the RX100 series from Sony, the LX range from Panasonic and Fujifilm's X100 line, Canon's flagship PowerShot compact has struggled to stand out from the crowd in recent years. And it would be fair to say the outgoing G1 X Mark II, with its unique 1.5-inch sensor, missed the mark, so Canon is throwing everything at the G1 X Mark III.

Features

APS-C CMOS Sensor, 24.2MP

3.0-inch vari-angle touchscreen, 1,040,000 dots

1080p video capture

Where the G1 X Mark II used a 1.5-inch sensor, the G1 X Mark III uses a 24.2MP APS-C CMOS chip that's some 36% larger; it's nearly identical to the one in Canon's EOS 80D DSLR, delivering an ISO range from 100 to 25,600.

This is hooked up to Canon's latest DIGIC 7 image processor, allowing the PowerShot G1 X Mark III to not only handle data that much quicker than the older model, but promising to reduce the need to edit images thanks to an Auto Lighting Optimizer and Diffraction Correction.

The G1 X Mark III sports a slightly more modest zoom range than the older model, at 24-72mm compared to 24-120mm, and has a f/2.8-5.6 aperture range. It also offers a close-focusing distance of just 10cm, while the lens features a nine-bladed aperture, which Canon says will produce pleasing background blur.

To minimize blur caused by camera shake, the PowerShot G1 X Mark III features a dual-sensing image stabilization system that can compensate for movement by up to four stops.

There's also five-axis Advanced Dynamic IS for video recording. While we're touching on video, the PowerShot G1 X Mark III can shoot 1080p video at up to 60p – there's no 4K video capture here.

The PowerShot G1 X Mark III also gets a panoramic sweep mode, allowing you to capture a 67MP image (24,064 x 2800 for horizontal shots, 16,000 x 4200 for vertical images), with the camera automatically stitching the panorama as you pan the camera.

The PowerShot G1 X Mark III features a built-in EVF – something that was missing from the Mark II – with a 2.36 million dot 0.39x Organic EL display, while there's a 3.0-inch vari-angle touchscreen display with a resolution of 1.04 million dots, identical to the screens on the latest EOS DSLRs, such as the EOS Rebel T7i / 800D.

There's Wi-Fi, NFC and always-on Bluetooth connectivity to enable you to remotely transfer images from your camera to a compatible smart device. Canon's Camera Connect app also lets you wake the camera from its slumber (provided you haven't turned the camera fully off), as well as browse photos and operate the camera remotely.

Build and handling

The design of the Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark III is quite a shift from the Mark II, more closely resembling that of the PowerShot G5 X, and it's all the better for it.

The G1 X Mark II never felt that satisfying to hold, and felt unnecessarily cumbersome. The Mark III feels much better in the hand – despite squeezing in a larger sensor the camera is some 16% smaller and 14.8mm thinner, while the fit and finish are a noticeable improvement over the older model. There's a tiny built-in flash above lens, while the PowerShot G1 X Mark III is even dust- and drip-proof, with Canon stating that it offers similar weather sealing to the EOS 80D.

The PowerShot G1 X Mark III is in actual fact only a bit bigger than the G5 X

The PowerShot G1 X Mark III is in actual fact only a bit bigger than the Powershot G5 X – you'd be hard pushed to tell their silhouettes apart. Despite its diminutive proportions though, it still provides a pleasingly secure purchase thanks to the sculptured front grip and pronounced thumb rest. The textured grip has a nice tactile feel as well, which adds to the overall satisfying feel of the camera.

The controls are sensibly positioned, with the front command dial and top plate exposure compensation dial falling under the fingers nicely, while Canon has designed the shutter release to match those of high-end EOS cameras. There's now a single click-less control ring round the front of the lens as well, which can be assigned to functions such as manual focusing, or be used to zoom the lens, though we found the rocker switch positioned round the shutter button quicker to use for the latter.

Autofocus

Dual Pixel CMOS AF

Touch-and-drag AF

49 AF points on a 7 x 7 grid

Canon's Dual Pixel CMOS AF has impressed us for Live View photography on its latest range of EOS DSLRs like the EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D, so it's no surprise to see it make an appearance in the PowerShot G1 X Mark III.

Featuring 49 AF points arranged in a 7 x 7 grid, the system provides good coverage across the frame, although not quite edge to edge. Focusing is swift, with Canon stating 0.09 secs to acquire focus, while there's also the ability to touch and drag the AF area via the rear screen (even when using the EVF).

We found autofocus performance to be very good on the whole. Focusing is quick in good light, and while speed drops a bit when light levels fall, it still seemed to focus happily in most instances.

The PowerShot G1 X Mark III can do a solid job at tracking moving subjects as well, though it's not quite a match for the RX100 V's sophisticated AF system. We found it behaves better when the subject you're following contrasts more with the background, but it's still a capable performer.

Performance

7fps burst shooting (9fps with focus lock)

Polished interface

200-shot battery life

The Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark III can shoot at a pretty rapid 7fps, while if you need even more speed you have the option of shooting at 9fps, provided you're prepared to have focus locked at the first shot. This doesn't quite match the blistering 24fps offered by the Sony RX100 V, but it's a decent burst speed that should be up to the job for most of the scenarios the G1 X Mark III is intended for.

Buffer performance is also pretty respectable, with the camera capable of capturing 24 JPEGs or 19 raw files before it slows up – again, that's nothing like the RX100 V's 150 JPEG shots, but it should satisfy most potential users.

The touchscreen interface has to be one of the best around – it's easy to use, and really responsive

The viewfinder is nice and crisp, while the rear display doesn't disappoint. The gapless design means viewing angles are excellent, while the touchscreen interface has to be one of the best around – it's easy to use, and really responsive.

The image stabilization system works very well – we found it was certainly possible to achieve nice, sharp shots with shutter speeds much slower than we'd otherwise be comfortable with.

The PowerShot G1 X Mark III uses real-time metering from the sensor, and offers Evaluative, Centre-weighted and Spot metering options, with the evaluative system doing a sound job under most lighting conditions.

Battery life is pretty limited on the G1 X Mark III, however, at just 200 shots. This is a little less than the likes of the RX100 V's 220-shot battery life (which isn't that impressive to start with), so you'll definitely want to consider additional batteries if you're going to be out for the day or weekend.

Image quality

ISO100-25,600

Panoramic shot mode

+/-3 EV exposure compensation in 1/3 or 1/2-stop increments

With the Powershot G1 X Mark III using a 24.2MP APS-C CMOS sensor that's almost identical to the EOS 80D's, there are no nasty surprises when it comes to image quality.

Detail rendition appears very good, while noise is also handled well. Results from ISO100 to 1600 appear very good, with pleasing color reproduction. While shots taken at ISO3200 and 6400 display some signs of luminance (grain-like noise), it's very fine in structure, while there are some minor hints of chroma (color) noise creeping in.

Overall though, these don't impact on images enough to make it become an issue. Above those settings files start displaying more pronounced luminance and chroma noise, causing detail and color saturation to suffer. While we'd avoid using ISO25,600 where possible, it's still possible to get a satisfactory shot.

Lens performance is good – at 24mm it's nice and sharp at the centre wide-open at f/2.8, though when zoomed in to 72mm you'll need to stop down a little bit beyond the maximum f/5.6 maximum aperture to improve sharpness. Distortion is well-controlled in camera, while it was hard to spot any noticeable vignetting.

Verdict

The Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark III is certainly a big improvement over the undercooked G1 X Mark II. The fact that Canon has managed to engineer a camera this size with a large APS-C sensor is very impressive – and even more impressive is the fact that this is the first APS-C format compact camera to feature a zoom lens, making it something quite unique.

The sticking point might be the asking price, especially when you compare this camera to DSLR or mirrorless rivals. However, if you're set on a premium all-in-one compact camera, the G1 X Mark III doesn't look that bad when you compare it to similarly priced rivals. The fabulous Fujifilm X100F costs more, but doesn't offer a zoom lens, while the slightly more affordable Sony RX100 V offers a longer zoom and snappier performance, but with a smaller 1-inch sensor.

All things considered, Canon may have hit the sweet spot for enthusiast photographers looking for a compact partner for their DSLR kit, or for those looking for a versatile and neat all-in-one solution that delivers DSLR-quality images.

Competition

]]>Nikon D3400http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/nikon-d3400-1329573/review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/nikon-d3400-1329573/reviewNikon refines its entry-level DSLR proposition once again, with the D3400 featuring a diminutive body, huge battery life and a new kit lens.Tue, 28 Nov 2017 09:44:00 +0000techradar.comThe D3400 is the latest in a line of Nikon entry-level DSLRs that adheres to a no-frills template, one that prioritises small size, light weight and a simple design, all the while maintaining the benefits of an interchangable-lens system.

A follow-up to the brilliant D3300, Nikon has managed to shave a little of the D3300's weight off the body for this new iteration, but it's also boosted its battery life and improved a number of features to make it an even mightier proposition for the novice user.

It's also launched the camera alongside a redesigned kit lens, one that sports a retractable inner barrel and a more streamlined design that eschews the focusing and Vibration Reduction switches we're used to seeing.

But, after so many warmly received models and a raft of fine competitors in both DSLR and mirrorless categories, does the D3400 have enough going for it to make it worth the beginner's attention?

Features

APS-C CMOS sensor, 24.2MP

3.0-inch screen, 921,000 dots

1080p video capture

The Nikon D3400 sports an APS-C sized sensor - as is the case with every entry-level DSLR, with its 24.2MP pixel count very respectable – certainly we wouldn't expect this to be any higher at this level – and this is heightened by the lack of an optical low-pass filter, which should help it to capture better detail than would otherwise be the case.

This works over a reasonably wide sensitivity range of ISO100-25,600, which represents a one-stop expansion over the native ISO12,800 range of its D3300 predecessor. Once again it's paired with Nikon's Expeed 4 processing engine, which, among other things, allows for 5fps burst shooting and Full HD video recording up to an impressive 60p. Nikon's familiar Picture Controls are also on hand, although for those wanting their images and videos processed into more distinct styles immediately, Effects such as Super Vivid, Illustration and Toy Camera are also accessible through the mode dial.

The camera's 11-point AF system features a single cross-type point in the centre of its array, with a maximum sensitivity down to -1EV. You can set the system to focus continuously on a subject, including with Nikon's 3D tracking technology, and the camera can also continue to autofocus in live view and when recording videos. Manual focus is also possible, selectable through the menu and performed with a ring at the very front of the camera's kit lens.

Not that they're not bettered elsewhere, but the specs of both the viewfinder and LCD are in keeping with what we expect at this level. The viewfinder is based on a pentamirror construction and shows approximately 95% of the scene, while the LCD measures 3in in size and has a respectable resolution of 921k dots.

Wi-Fi hasn't been included inside the body, although wireless image transmission is still possible through the SnapBridge feature. First incorporated inside the D500, this uses always-on Bluetooth Low Energy to deliver images straight to smart devices, either as they are captured or afterwards. It's not possible to control the camera's shooting settings remotely in any way, although this is not too great an omission on such a model.

To help the first-time user understand their camera better, Nikon has once again implemented its Guide mode feature

To help the first-time user understand their camera better, Nikon has once again implemented its Guide mode feature. This provides an alternative to the main menus and helps the user quickly capture specific types of images. There's also the familiar '?' button that can be called upon to explain camera functions.

Nikon though has made a few omissions from the D3300. Gone is the microphone port around the camera's side, which means that you're restricted to the built in monaural microphones, although this is not a critical loss when you consider that it's aimed at beginner users. The flash has become weaker too, its guide number dropping from GN 12m at ISO 100 to just 7m here. Perhaps most importantly, built-in sensor-cleaning technology has also failed to make the cut, which means you have to use a more tedious process that requires you to take a reference photo before processing it with the included Capture NX D software, or raise the mirror and physically clean it with a swab or blower.

The core specs – notably the sensor, AF system and video specs – compare well with the camera's chief rival, the Canon EOS 1300D, although these and others are essentially unchanged from the D3300. Some may lament the lack of built-in Wi-Fi, however, as well as a touchscreen.

Build and handling

Polycarbonate construction

Design little changed from D3300

Weighs 445g

The D3400 is designed to be small and lightweight, but Nikon has ensured there is enough grip to get hold of the camera and space on the rear for the thumb to rest without knocking into any controls. At just 650g with its battery, memory card and kit lens in place the model is one of the lightest DSLR combinations around, around 40g lighter than the Canon EOS 1300D and its own 18-55mm kit lens and around 200g lighter than the Pentax K-50 and lens.

Naturally, such a small and light body does have its downsides. Mounting anything but Nikon's smallest and lightest lenses makes for an imbalanced partnership, for example, and it's easy to get your nose in the way of the menu selector pad on the rear which can make adjusting the focusing point tricky. The camera also lacks the build quality of its D5xxx siblings like the D5600, which is to be expected given its lower billing.

A soft rubber around the grip improves the model's feel in the hand, and this is complemented with the same finish on the thumb rest

Still, there are many positives elsewhere. A soft rubber around the grip improves the model's feel in the hand, and this is complemented with the same finish on the thumb rest. The mode dial is easy to grip and rotate, and while buttons are somewhat flat and lack much travel they are reasonably sized and well marked. The customisable Fn button to the side of the lens mount is very welcome, particularly in the absence of a direct control for ISO, although this can be assigned three alternative functions. Also nice to find is a dedicated drive mode button, which you'll no doubt find useful if you tend to call upon burst-shooting and self-timer options with any frequency.

Autofocus

11-point AF, 1 cross-type AF point

AF-assist illuminator

3D-tracking AF

In line with many other APS-C based rivals, the camera's 11-point Multi CAM 1000 AF system covers a healthy proportion of the frame, the points arranged in a diamond-like formation. This is essentially unchanged from previous models, although the new AF-P 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR kit lens has been engineered to provide fast and quiet focus.

It is indeed very quiet, with just a slight burr as it works, and something that's easily masked by most ambient noise. Overall speed is also very good, with the system bringing subjects to focus as promptly as expected when shooting in good light. Naturally this slows in poorer light, although the AF assist lamp is relatively bright and readily springs into play.

Although only the central AF point is cross type for enhanced sensitivity, the points immediately above and below it also prove to be more sensitive than the other surrounding points. I found this triplet could focus on very low-contrast subjects where the other eight could not.

When set to track a moving subject the system is capable of keeping up as a subject moves around the scene, although as points are positioned much further apart from each other than on cameras with a more densely packed array, it can often lose subjects if they don't occupy enough of the frame to begin with.

There's a slight focusing slowdown in live view, although a comparison with a similarly-sized Nikkor lens with an SWM motor shows the newer AF-P version to be both faster and quieter. In good light it still manages to find the subject without too much hesitation, although during this review there were occasions in poorer light where the system could not find focus at all. Still, for studio and other tripod-based shooting, this is completely usable.

Performance

5fps burst shooting

SnapBridge connectivity

1200 shot battery life

We were pleased to see the D3400's metering didn't tend to overexpose when faced with a predominantly dark subject, although, as is the case with many DSLRs, it does appear to lean slightly towards underexposure when faced with brighter areas. Still, with a dedicated exposure compensation button on the top plate that works in conjunction with the rear command dial, any intervention here is fast and straightforward.

The camera's Auto White Balance performance is similarly very good, with just a handful of slips during the course of this review. It did better than expected under artificial lighting, with just a little warmth taken away from some scenes, although performance under the traditionally difficult mixed natural/artificial conditions remained commendable.

The D3400's Matrix metering performed well under a range of lighting conditions

The D3400 is unlikely to be anyone's first choice for action photography, capable of shooting at a modest 5fps. This performance is likely to be deemed adequate of most shooting situations, but those wanting to capture prolonged bursts may find it tricky to do so when shooting raw files.

The camera's viewfinder produces a pleasingly clear, color-accurate and reasonably bright rendition of the scene, while the LCD display beneath it is fixed in place and not sensitive to touch.

These are not features we should expect as standard on an entry-level DSLR (even if a handful of rivals do offer one or the other, or both), but the key thing is that it can reproduce the scene faithfully and show details clearly, and with 921k dots it does a good job to do both in balanced conditions and indoors.

One feature that deserves high praise is the 1200-shot battery life...this places the D3400 at a huge advantage over other models

Wireless image transfer takes place over the camera's Bluetooth-running SnapBridge system, for which you need Nikon's dedicated app of the same name. This has not been well received since it introduction earlier in the year, and it was not possible to establish a connection when paired with an iPhone 6 for the duration of this test, despite both devices recognising each other.

It doesn't come as too great a surprise that the camera doesn't quite stretch to recording 4K video, offering Full HD instead, although good results are possible. Manual control over exposure may be enabled and while a little rolling shutter is visible in certain scenes, this is only really an issue if you pan the camera at speed.

One feature that deserves high praise is the 1200-shot battery life. Having initially charged it fully, the camera maintained a full three bars after two days of being tested. Battery life is an issue for many compact system cameras, whose small batteries often have to power both LCD screen and electronic viewfinders, although the D3400's battery is far juicier than most other DSLR batteries too (certainly in this class). This places the D3400 at a huge advantage over other models.

One small annoyance is that Nikon has maintained the same 'this option is not available at the current settings or in the camera's current state' error message from previous models. This is particularly unhelpful when faced with unselectable options as it doesn't explain exactly why they cannot be chosen, and it may cause the first-time user to have to check their manual more often than should be necessary.

Image quality

ISO100-25,600

No low-pass filter

Picture Control image effects

With no low-pass filter in front of its sensor, it's possible to record a very good level of detail in images, particularly if you use a high-quality prime lens, a macro optic or one of Nikon's pro-oriented zooms. One thing that lets down image quality is the standard of the 18-55mm VR kit lens, particularly at the wideangle and telephoto extremes. Partner the D3400 with some good lenses though, and you achieve images with excellent levels of detail - like the shot below.

The 24.2MP sensor inside the D3400 is capable of delivering excellent levels of detail

At wider apertures images are somewhat soft, particularly in corners and at the edges of the frame, although when used in an intermediate focal length it's possible get some very good sharpness in the centre of the frame. As with many similar kit lenses, lateral chromatic aberration and curvilinear distortion can be visible in Raw files, although both are successfully and automatically dealt with in JPEGs.

It's possible to recover a decent amount of detail in post-processing

One thing those processing images will appreciate is the camera's healthy dynamic range. I found images underexposed by up to around 3-3.5EV stops could still be rectified (depending on ISO) without noise becoming an issue – at least not one that can't be dealt with by way of careful noise reduction. Just take a look at the shots above.

The camera's slight tendency towards underexposure when dealing with bright areas also means that more highlight detail is retained than would otherwise be the case, although these areas can be tamed in post-production too. Against high-contrast edges it's also easy to spot purple fringing, and this remains in JPEGs, so this is one area of attention for raw post-production.

In the kinds of conditions in which high ISOs would be called upon, images captured up until around 800 range are still well coloured and troubled to no great degree by noise, although it becomes harder to process this out from images captured after this point. It's a shame there is no control over high-ISO noise reduction past on and off, as some may prefer to adjust this in finer increments. Fortunately, the effective VR system inside the kit lens means you shouldn't immediately need to call upon higher options as light levels fall.

The Vivid Picture Control mode is a lovely choice for flowers and foliage

Nikon's Picture Control options provide a sensible array of color options, and it's great to see the Flat option that first came along in the much more advanced D810. This can be used when recording videos, as a means of providing a better starting point for grading. Otherwise, the Standard mode is suitable for everyday shooting, neither saturating colors unnaturally nor leaving them lacklustre. The Vivid mode is a lovely choice for flowers and foliage, and gives colours just the right pep, although all can be adjusted fairly comprehensively with regards to contrast, saturation, brightness and so on.

Verdict

The Nikon D3400 is a fine performer and more than enough camera for most people just getting started with DSLR photography. Its body is small and light and its specs, while very similar to its predecessor's, are perfectly decent for a model of its class. Image and video quality is more than satisfactory too, and with the further benefit of in-camera raw processing, you can also polish up your creations quickly and easily for immediate use if you wish.

As a Nikon DSLR, its compatibility with decades worth of top-quality Nikkor glass is another major advantage. Furthermore, the benefit of its optical low-pass-filter-free sensor means that you can get the best out of these optics.

Perhaps most importantly for a entry-level DSLR, the built-in Guide mode and straightforward controls make the D3400 incredibly easy to use

The advantage of the 1200-shot battery shouldn't be overlooked too (especially when compared to mirrorless rivals), and means that it's much more likely to be taken to a festival, on holiday or elsewhere where you may not always have easy access to a power supply.

Perhaps most importantly for a entry-level DSLR, the built-in Guide mode and straightforward controls make the D3400 incredibly easy to use.

Initially quite a pricey option when launched last year, prices have fallen steadily to make the D3400 a much more appealing proposition. If you're after an easy to use DSLR with a huge back-up of lenses and accessories at your disposal, this is a great starting point.

Competition

]]>Sony Alpha A6300http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/sony-a6300-1314326/review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/sony-a6300-1314326/reviewSony's 4K-shooting update to its popular A6000 mirrorless camera brings a new sensor and an improved focusing system.Fri, 24 Nov 2017 21:54:00 +0000techradar.comNew:The Alpha A6300 has since been replaced by the Alpha A6500, but it remains in the Sony mirrorless line-up. The A6500 features a number of performance improvements, as well as touchscreen control. Don't discount the A6300 as it's still a very capable mirrorless camera, and is now more affordable than ever.

Sony may have spent the last few years reshaping the full-frame market with a string of popular compact system cameras, but it's also managed to simultaneously keep its APS-C alternatives relevant and exciting.

Its previous A6000 was very much testament to this, with a well-rounded spec sheet and excellent performance helping it to become a successful model for the company. Thankfully, the new A6300 retains what made that model so popular, but the areas in which Sony has sought to improve it should give it many added layers of appeal to enthusiast users, whether they tend to shoot sports, video or something else.

As an upper-level APS-C model the camera goes up against the likes of the Fujifilm X-T2, as well as the newer and pricier X-Pro2, together with Micro Four Thirds offerings such as the Olympus Pen-F and more affordable Panasonic Lumix GX8. Interestingly, at its current price, it also occupies something of a middle ground against Sony's full-frame alternatives, being a little cheaper than the Alpha A7 II but pricier than the still-available A7 and A7R.

Features

The Exmor CMOS APS-C sensor maintains the same 24.2MP pixel count as the one inside the A6000, although the sensor itself is newly developed, and features copper wiring in its construction to boost readout speed and light-gathering efficiency.

Sony has also said that refinements to the camera's BIONZ X processing engine mean it can squeeze all the goodness out of the new sensor, with particular focus on low-noise, high-resolution results in the upper range of the camera's ISO100-51,200 sensitivity span.

Sony has also equipped the camera with its 4D Focus system, with 425 phase-detect AF pixels that reach almost to the peripheries of the frame. This is the highest number of phase-detect points we've seen on an interchangeable-lens camera to date, and this density, together with 169 additional contrast-detect points, is said to enable the camera to focus on moving subjects in as little as 0.05 seconds.

Furthermore, the camera's phase-detect points continue to function when using A-mount lenses via an adapter, which will no doubt please those moving up from the older system.

Those intending to use the camera for moving subjects will also be pleased to learn that not only has the 11fps burst-shooting option of the A6000 been maintained – with focus tracking and exposure adjusted throughout the burst – but that a slightly slower 8fps alternative option is also on hand, with a blackout between each frame to provide a similar experience to using an optical viewfinder.

Video recording has also received plenty of attention. In contrast to the Full HD standard on the A6000 and most other cameras at this level, the A6300 ramps up to 4K shooting in the Super 35mm format – a first for a non-full-frame Sony model.

Thanks to the changes made to the focusing system, focus speeds are also said to be twice as fast as the system inside the A6000

Instead of using pixel binning, this captures 6K footage – i.e. oversampling the scene – before downsampling it to a 4K resolution, a process that Sony claims produces 'exceptional' depth and detail.

Other changes include a new XAVC S codec used for the above, and the S-Log Gamma function. Thanks to the changes made to the focusing system, focus speeds are also said to be twice as fast as the system inside the A6000, while a 3.5mm mic port has also been included.

The 3-inch display on the rear, with its 921k-dot resolution and ability to be tilted, has been carbon copied from the A6000, which means it's shaped in the video-friendly 16:9 aspect ratio, although sadly it's not a touch-sensitive screen.

The 0.39-inch electronic viewfinder above this, however – or 'Tru-Finder' in Sony parlance – has now been equipped with a 2.359 million-dot XGA OLED panel, against the 1.44 million dots seen previously.

If this viewfinder sounds familiar, it's probably because many other Sony models higher up have also sported one with similar specs, from the Cyber-shot RX1R II compact to the A7 family of mirrorless models. Magnification is once again set at 1.07x, which is roughly equivalent to 0.70x in 35mm terms, and Sony also claims that setting it to its maximum display rate of 120fps results in very few afterimages.

Other changes include improved dust and moisture resistance, although not quite to the same splash-proof level as the Olympus OM-D E-M5 II and Fujifilm X-Pro2

Other changes include improved dust and moisture resistance, although not quite to the same splash-proof level as the Olympus OM-D E-M5 II and Fujifilm X-Pro2, as well as a gauge for keeping shots level, and a new silent shooting mode that should see the camera more suited to sensitive environments.

Battery life has also been boosted, with 350 frames quoted when using the viewfinder and 400 frames when using the LCD screen, although the number actually achieved will be subject to display settings and image-reviewing habits, among other things.

In terms of connectivity, the camera is furnished with the standard USB and HDMI micro connections, with Wi-Fi and NFC on the inside to keep things cable-free where necessary. As with the majority of such models, it records all images and videos onto SD, SDHC and SDXC media (with support for up to UHS-I), as well as the less-common, Sony-specific Memory Stick PRO Duo format.

The A6300 makes a positive first impression. The large, rubbered grip, combined with the body's depth and the raised edge on the thumb rest, makes it easier to handle than many similar cameras. The body also appears to strike the right balance between offering plenty of logically positioned controls without attempting to cram these onto every surface, causing you to press buttons inadvertently.

Occasionally, however, I felt the grip wasn't raised far enough from the front plate for it to always be entirely comfortable, particularly when holding the camera between shots. I found the tips of my fingers were often squashed against the front plate, and ultimately I resorted to holding the camera by the lens rather than the grip when carrying it, with my index finger on the back plate for extra security.

The top and front plates are somewhat minimal in their design, with only one button present across both (a customisable control next to the shutter release button/power switch collar). Because of this the camera is able to offer both a built-in flash and a multi-interface shoe in addition to the electronic viewfinder, together with two large dials – a command dial and another for changing the shooting mode.

The stiffness of the shooting mode dial is welcome, as most photographers won't be adjusting this with such frequency that would require it to be looser (and thus more prone to accidental turning). Likewise the stiffness of the command dial next to it, which can be used to adjust aperture, shutter speed, exposure compensation and more – which is perhaps just as well given its more exposed and easy-to-knock edges, although it would be good to see the camera more responsive to its turning, as it can take a fair few turns to get to where you want to be.

The back plate mostly follows a tried-and-tested formula, with a handful of well-marked controls and the loosely moving control wheel enabling you to navigate menus and scrutinize images with ease.

One new change is the arrival of a collar around the magnify button; this can be used in conjunction with the button to select Auto-Exposure Lock, or alternatively to quickly switch to manual focus. This works well and falls right next to the thumb, so it's great if you often find yourself fine-tuning focus.

The rear display pulls away easily, but is stiff enough to remain in the position to which it's adjusted. When extended to certain positions, however, some of the most frequently-used controls are awkward to operate, particularly the Fn and menu buttons, as well as the control wheel.

The menu system is comprehensive, with a generally good level of clarity in terms of display and language (a handful of abbreviations are used, although the majority aren't quite as cryptic as on other cameras).

But, although options are segregated into different tabs, some groups of settings overflow where they could easily be placed under one. Given that there are 27 separate screens, all appearing very similar on account of there being no colour-coding – something present on other Sony models – it can sometimes be difficult to find what you need.

One slight annoyance is the position of the movie record button, right at the edge of the rear plate. During this test, I assigned movie recording to the C1 button on the top plate to make this more convenient to press, although this can be assigned elsewhere should you already have this set to another function of your choosing.

The diopter correction wheel is also in perhaps the least convenient place possible, making adjustments while your face is to the camera unnecessarily awkward.

Although the A6000's viewfinder was a capable performer it's still welcome to see this component upgraded on the Sony A6300, given how key a part of the camera it is. As someone who doesn't wear glasses I found its eye-point to be in just the right spot for me when held at a comfortable distance away. The panel's resolution provides very good clarity and contrast is high, and although noise and lagging increased in darker conditions I still found it perfectly usable.

The on-screen (shooting) display of the LCD is large and clear, and the fact that images captured in the standard 3:2 aspect ratio do not occupy the entirety of the screen helps, as the black borders on either side allow for most of the secondary shooting information to stand out (the rest is superimposed on the image).

The screen itself appears somewhat underpowered when used outside, however, even under overcast conditions. Switching the camera to the Sunny Weather option, or brightening the display manually, is a great help, although this obviously comes at the expense of battery life.

Although the camera doesn't quite offer the near-instant start-up time of a similar DSLR, it's not so far behind that it makes any difference in all but critical situations.

Sony states that the A6300 can shoot 21 consecutive raw frames or the same number of Raw+JPEG frames, and 44 JPEG frames at the highest quality setting. In practice, the camera easily met all of these targets, even exceeding them by the odd frame, although slower memory cards may throttle this.

Helpfully, the camera also remained operational while writing images to the card, not fully functional but often allowing a few subsequent frames to be captured as these were being dealt with.

The revamped focusing system is one of the A6300's main highlights, so does it deliver on the high expectations? Largely, yes. In good light it brings subjects to focus with very little delay, refocusing whenever the lens is zoomed to an approximate point so that focusing takes as little time as possible when initiated by the user.

The camera also willingly deploys the AF assist light wherever it feels it needs to, which helps to keep focusing speed swift in poorer light.

The density of shadow areas in this scene means noise is less visible in the JPEG here than in the raw image (below), but shadow details are, not surprisingly, less visible too. There is, however, plenty of detail in well-lit areas

The high number of phase-detect AF points, and in turn their density, also plays a significant part in ensuring that moving subjects are tracked successfully – and performance here is strong. As soon as focus is acquired, the relevant number of points dance around the subject, and continue to adhere as the subject or camera moves.

I found this appeared to work very well whether the subject was moving towards or away from the camera, roughly along the optical axis, or if it was moving across the frame. In the latter case the camera would, more often than not, continue to track the subject as it approached the very edge of the focusing array (it doesn't stretch right up to the peripheries, but close enough), and it managed to do this with subjects moving at a variety of speeds.

Although I could appreciate how well the A6300 did from monitoring the focus points' movement at the time of capture, examining my images afterwards showed that while it did occasionally leave the subject, and sometimes move instead to a flat, featureless area that you wouldn't ordinarily expect would present any kind of distraction, on many occasions it successfully managed to make its way back to the subject. On other occasions it did not, although the overall hit rate showed the system to be highly capable in such scenarios. Overall, when it works well – and it usually does – it works very well indeed.

The closest focusing distance of the Sony E 16-70mm f/4 Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar T* ZA OSS, which is a logical kit lens upgrade, enables backgrounds to be nicely out of focus at wide apertures

The 8fps burst shooting mode will be a popular option for those coming from DSLRs, given how it's not possible to appreciate exactly when images have been captured using the faster 11fps mode. Of course, the sound from the shutter gives you some idea, but the lack of a visible cue does result in the disconnect that Sony has attempted to remedy with the slower option.

There is an even slower 'Lo' option, which fires at three frames per second, although whichever mode you use the constant presence of the focusing points and their movement keeps you updated on how accurately the camera is keeping up on the subject. It's a shame, however, that only the Lo option can be used in conjunction with silent shooting, as you may want to use the faster options when capturing live subjects.

The Sony A6300's metering system is largely reliable, with just an occasional bias towards underexposure. Often this would only be around half a stop or so away from what was expected, so could easily be rectified either with exposure compensation or in post-capture raw processing.

The camera's auto white balance system also did very well to faithfully reproduce colours in a range of conditions, even impressing under typically problematic artificial sources.

The Vivid Creative style gives JPEG images like this a pleasing punch over the raw version (below), with nice colour, good contrast and no sharpening artefacts visible

The quality of JPEGs straight out of the camera is very good. Images show good sharpness, contrast and colour next to raw files, although the raw files are generally well coloured to begin with, so the difference here is not as significant as usual.

JPEGs also show that the DRO system does well to slightly bring up shadow areas, to make images more suitable for immediate use.

Noise is generally well controlled across the range, and images are perfectly usable even at higher settings such as ISO6400. My only reservation is the camera's Normal noise reduction setting, which appears somewhat heavy handed in its approach to high-ISO images; thankfully, a Low setting and the option to disable the feature completely are on offer.

With the Sony E 16-70mm f/4 Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar T* ZA OSS mounted the level of detail in raw files is very good, with a pleasing consistency across the frame when the lens is stopped down to a mid-range aperture. Many users, however, are likely to be using the camera in conjunction with the Sony E 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 PZ OSS kit option, which I didn't have access to for this review.

Overall video quality from the A6300 is excellent. Footage shows plenty of detail and motion is nice and smooth, and there are no obvious artefacts present in footage captured under balanced conditions. Even in lower light, where noise patterning starts to take hold, footage shows just a slight texture rather than being swamped with unsightly coloured noise. If you're viewing results on a display with a resolution lower than 4K, you're also likely to see such imperfections to a lesser degree.

Audio quality in videos is also decent, with a clean sound and good balance between bass and treble. As with many other cameras, it is somewhat susceptible to the battering sounds of wind noise, although using an external microphone with a deadcat or a similar windshield is possible.

Sadly, it's not possible to use the Sunny Weather setting when recording in 4K, which means the aforementioned screen brightness issues rear their head.

We chose three rival cameras for the Sony A6300 to see how it measured up in our lab tests: the Panasonic GX8, the Olympus PEN-F and the Fuji X-Pro2

We've carried out lab tests on the Sony A6300 across its full ISO range for resolution, noise (including signal to noise ratio) and dynamic range. We test the JPEGs shot by the camera, but we also check the performance with raw files. Most enthusiasts and pros prefer to shoot raw, and the results can often be quite different.

Sony A6300 resolution charts

We test camera resolution using an industry-standard ISO test chart that allows precise visual comparisons. This gives us numerical values for resolution in line widths/picture height, and you can see how the Sony A6300 compares with its rivals in the charts below.

JPEG resolution analysis: The A6300 leads the way for detail resolution amongst its competition here.

Raw (converted to TIFF) resolution analysis: The A6300 puts in an impressively consistent performance, managing to maintain a high level of detail into the high sensitivity settings.

Dynamic range is a measure of the range of tones the sensor can capture. Cameras with low dynamic range will often show 'blown' highlights or blocked-in shadows. This test is carried out in controlled conditions using DxO hardware and analysis tools.

We use DxO Analyzer to measure noise and dynamic range in controlled laboratory conditions.

Dynamic range is measured in exposure values (EV). The higher the number the wider the range of brightness levels the camera can capture. This falls off with increasing ISO settings because the camera is having to amplify a weaker signal. Raw files capture a higher dynamic range because the image data is unprocessed.

Sony A6300 dynamic range charts

JPEG dynamic range analysis: Lab testing shows a great performance with regards to dynamic range at lower and higher sensitivities next to its immediate rivals, with just a slight dip in the ISO3200-6400 region. Nevertheless the X-Pro2 does a little better for much of the sensitivity range.

Raw (converted to TIFF) dynamic range analysis: Dynamic range in raw files starts at a reasonable level, although by ISO400 this starts to slip, and at the highest settings performance from the Panasonic GX8 and Olympus Pen-F is considerably stronger.

This is a test of the camera's noise levels. The higher the signal to noise ratio, the greater the difference in strength between the real image data and random background noise, so the 'cleaner' the image will look. The higher the signal to noise ratio, the better.

Sony A6300 signal to noise ratio charts

JPEG signal to noise ratio analysis: The A6300 does an excellent job to match the signal to noise performance of its rivals at its base ISO, and remains strong as sensitivity is raised. Even at the highest settings tested, the readings show it to be very capable.

Raw (converted to TIFF) signal to noise ratio analysis: Despite strong JPEG results, the camera fails to keep up with the competition when raw images are analysed here. Performance is consistent across the sensitivity range, but sadly lower throughout.

While there's room for improvement in terms of design and operation, the A6300 is nevertheless a competent and reliable camera that does what it sets out to do very well. Crucially, it captures pleasing images on standard settings and records video to a high standard.

The previous A6000 can currently be had for less than half the price of the A6300, and this could make the newer model appear overpriced – although those using the viewfinder or focus tracking with some frequency, or needing 4K video recording to hand, may find this premium more reasonable.

Still, the model isn't short of strong competitors. Videographers may well be drawn to the cheaper 4K-shooting Panasonic Lumix GX8; that camera's form, and the additions of an electronic viewfinder and flexible LCD, make it seem like the A6300's closest rival, while the company's bulkier GH4 or the GH4R update are also viable alternatives if video recording is key.

Those not fussed about 4K video resolution can also turn to the excellent Olympus OM-D E-M5 II or newer Pen-F, both of which offer the advantage of built-in image stabilization over the A6300, and many prospective purchasers may also add the Fujifim X-T1, and even one of Sony's similarly priced A7-series models, to their shortlist.

We liked

There's plenty to like about the A6300. Its focusing system is sound, replete with options for capturing a range of different subjects and performs strongly when tracking moving subjects, while the viewfinder is a pleasure to use. The tiltable screen makes composing images at ground level or high up easy. Video quality is excellent, and images are pleasing straight out of the camera.

We disliked

In the absence of any significant failings, it's only really a handful of smaller shortcomings that let the A6300 down. The screen feels somewhat underpowered; some of the controls aren't quite as accessible as they could be; and the lack of in-camera raw processing is a shame. Furthermore, while the tiltable LCD is great, it's shame it's not a touchscreen.

These are all minor issues though, and none of them should realistically discourage anyone interested in what the A6300 offers.

Final verdict

The A6300 is a well-rounded model that should have wide appeal, both on account of what it offers on paper and its performance in a range of situations.

Those intending on using the A6300 for more considered video recording, or for tracking moving subjects (or both) are likely to be very pleased with what the camera offers, while the excellent electronic viewfinder also makes it a good choice for traditionalists who may have reservations about moving away from optical types. It's only really a handful of design and handling issues that let it down, making it slightly less convenient to operate than needs be.

Those who are tempted by what the camera offers but are on a budget should consider the previous A6000, which is still available at a temptingly low price.

While it was virtually identical to look at, and sported pretty much the same internal feature set, the T6s offered more body-mounted controls and a small LCD display, designed to appeal to more experienced users wanting more control.

Fast-forward two years and Canon has done the same thing again, launching the EOS 77D alongside the EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D.

Things are a little different this time though. The EOS 77D may share the same features as the T7i, but Canon has opted for a more distinctive and slightly larger design for the 77D to differentiate the two models.

Features

APS-C CMOS Sensor, 24.2MP

3.0-inch vari-angle touchscreen, 1,040,000 dots

1080p video capture

Look under the skin of the EOS 77D and it's pretty much identical to the EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D. That means it gets the new 24.2MP APS-C CMOS sensor, which uses Canon's latest sensor technology.

This should mean it uses the same on-chip analogue-to-digital conversion technology we've seen on the likes of the EOS 5D Mark IV. If this is the case, it should produce cleaner images at higher ISOs compared to the older sensor in the Rebel T6i and T6s.

Regardless of this, the EOS 77D promises to handle noise better at higher sensitivities thanks to the arrival of a new DIGIC 7 image processor, with a native ISO range of 100-25,600 that can be pushed another stop further to an ISO equivalent of 51,200 (you’ll have to dive into the menu to access this Hi setting). In addition, the DIGIC 7 chip is also said to improve AF performance over the DIGIC 6 processor.

Like the EOS Rebel T7i / 800D, the EOS 77D uses a 3.0-inch, vari-angle touchscreen display with a resolution of 1,040,000 dots. It’s a solidly specced screen, but perhaps a slightly larger 3.2-inch display, or a boost in resolution, would see it leapfrog rivals like the Nikon D5600.

It's also disappointing not to see 4K video on the EOS 77D, especially given Canon’s heritage in this area – as we've seen with mirrorless rivals like the Panasonic Lumix G80 / G85 and Fujifilm X-T20, 4K video is becoming an increasingly standard feature at this level.

Instead, you get Full HD capture up to 60p, while the EOS 77D also sports Canon's new 5-axis image stabilization system for shooting hand-held footage. This in-camera system is designed for videos only – Canon isn't ditching its lens-based IS system, but IS optics will be able to work in tandem with the in-camera system for video if you want.

The EOS 77D supports Wi-Fi and NFC connectivity, while there's also the option to set up a low-energy Bluetooth connection so you can always be connected to the camera. This enables you to remotely wake the camera from its sleep mode (provided you haven't turned the camera fully off), as well as browse photos and operate the camera remotely from your smart device.

Build and handling

If the EOS Rebel T7i / 800D and more enthusiast-orientated EOS 80D had a baby, the EOS 77D would be it.

It's proportionally larger than the T7i / 800D, but not quite as large as the EOS 80D, sitting neatly in between the two in the range.

The build and finish of the EOS 77D is most closely related to that of the T7i, though, with a similar combination of aluminum alloy and polycarbonate resin employed – in fact, it only weighs 8g more than its more compact sibling.

As with the EOS Rebel T7i / 800D though, we have an issue with the ultra-smooth finish on the majority of the exterior, which feels quite plasticky to the touch and at odds with the camera's price. That said, the grip is comfortable and the textured finish has a nice tactile feel.

The number of body mounted controls is where the real differences between the EOS 77D and T7i / 800D become noticeable, starting with the top-plate LCD display, which the latter camera lacks.

It's smaller than the top plate LCD on the EOS 80D, but still provides a quick reference point for a host of key shooting info – ISO setting, aperture and shutter speed, exposure compensation, battery level, Wi-Fi activation and shots remaining.

In front of this display are dedicated controls for ISO and AF, as well as a button to illuminate the LCD in poor light. The positioning of the LCD display means the mode dial moves to the left of the viewfinder, and unlike on the T7i / 800D, it features a locking mechanism; you’ll need to press and hold the central button to spin the mode dial round to the desired setting.

Moving round the back, there's a dedicated AF-On button for back-button focusing, which can be really handy if you regularly shoot using continuous focusing. Rather than the T7i / 800D's four-way control pad the EOS 77D features a multi-directional control pad encircled by a scroll wheel; this mirrors some higher-end EOS DSLRs, enabling you to quickly toggle key settings, and it's handy when the camera is raised to your eye.

Then there's the EOS 77D's touchscreen interface. We may have liked to have seen something a bit larger, and/or with more resolution, but there’s no quibbling about its functionality. It's nicely integrated into the camera’s interface, works really well and is one of the most polished examples we've seen.

There’s also an optical viewfinder with 95% coverage; this is typical for an entry-level DSLR, but with the EOS 77D having loftier aspirations it’s a little disappointing, especially with similarly priced rivals offering 100% coverage. While it might not seem that much of a difference, you’ll be surprised at how unwanted elements can encroach on the edges of the frame when you review your images.

Autofocus

45-point AF, all cross-type

Sensitive down to -3EV

Dual Pixel AF for Live View

Like the Rebel T7i / 800D, the EOS 77D takes advantage of a 45-point AF system with all cross-type sensors, which are sensitive in both the horizontal and vertical planes to deliver more accurate focusing. The setup here is a welcome boost over the EOS Rebel T6s / 760D’s modest 19 AF points.

It compares favorably to the Nikon D5600’s 39-point AF system (with 15 cross-type) and while it just loses out to the D7200’s 51-point system for total AF points, that camera, like the D5600, only has 15 cross-type points.

The EOS 77D’s autofocus system is also sensitive down to -3EV, so when light levels drop you should still be able to lock focus on poorly lit subjects, while 27 focus points are sensitive down to f/8 – while it might not be a key selling point for a lot of users, this can handy if you're shooting with a lens that has a maximum aperture of f/4 and you've paired it with a 2x teleconverter, as you'll still be able to take advantage of those 27 points.

Focusing speed was very prompt, with the 77D locking on briskly to our desired target in One Shot AF mode

As we’ve found with the T7i / 800D, which uses the same phase-detect AF system, this array does a very good job. Focusing speed was very prompt, with the 77D locking on briskly to our desired target in One Shot AF mode, even in poor light with the new 18-55mm lens fitted.

When it comes to shooting in continuous (AI Servo) AF mode and tracking a moving subject, there’s a noticeable boost in performance over the T6s / 760D’s 19-point arrangement. It's much more reliable than the older 19-point system, and the EOS 77D also uses its 7560-pixel RGB+IR metering sensor to help track subjects across the frame.

It will still mis-focus the odd shot in a sequence though, while there’s no real customization on offer – for instance, it’s not possible to tell the EOS 77D’s AF system that you want the bias to be towards the front or rear of the frame, while there are none of the advanced presets that more advanced EOS DSLRs, or rivals like the X-T20, offer.

While models higher up the EOS food chain feature a dedicated joystick for AF point selection, the EOS 77D relies on the multi-directional control pad and scroll wheel to do this.

For Live View and video recording the EOS 77D uses Canon's proven Dual Pixel AF technology, which offers 80% coverage of the frame.

We've seen this system in a host of recent Canon cameras, such as the EOS 5D Mark IV and EOS M5, and we've never failed to be impressed by how well it works. It's easily the best system in a DSLR, delivering snappy focusing, even if you want to track a (moderately fast) moving subject.

Performance

6fps burst shooting

User guide on camera

600-shot battery life

Like the T7i / 800D, the EOS 77D can rattle off shots at 6fps – we'd have liked to have seen this number improved to match mirrorless rivals like the Lumix G80 / G85, which is capable of 9fps, although that would risk the new camera treading on the toes of the EOS 80D's 7fps.

Battery life is good, at 600 shots, although you'll want to keep a spare handy if you plan to shoot predominantly with the rear display activated, as this will see battery life drop to 270 shots. It’s also worth bearing in mind that Nikon’s D5600 has a 820-shot battery life, while the D7200 can go for 1,100 shots.

Also like the T7i / 800D, the EOS 77D takes advantages of Canon's new clean-looking graphical interface, which is designed to help inexperienced users get to grips with some of the camera's key controls. Where the cameras differ is that you have to turn this feature on in the display settings of the EOS 77D, whereas it's the default mode of the T7i / 800D.

Metering is pretty sound, but the system can be tricked by high-contrast scenes

For the most part the evaluative mode will be the one you’ll be using, and it does a good job. As we’ve found with other EOS cameras though, because the system is weighted to the active AF point you can run into issues in high-contrast situations, as simply shifting the AF point can throw up two different exposures – some of our shots were a little overexposed for our liking.

The white balance system performs very well, while the option of an Ambient Auto White Balance mode has its uses, delivering slightly warmer results that can be welcome, while White Priority can deliver clean, neutral results even in artificial lighting.

Image quality

The EOS 77D uses Canon's new 24MP APS-C CMOS sensor, and as we’ve seen with the T7i / 800D this performs very well. Resolution is pretty much identical to the results from the T6s / 760D – which is hardly a surprise when you consider that they share the same pixel count – but it’s elsewhere that the new sensor design shines, particularly the way the camera handles noise.

The 24MP sensor renders a very good level of detail

At lower sensitivities shots appeared very clean with good levels of saturation, but it’s when you start increasing the ISO that the EOS 77D’s sensor really impresses. Looking at raw files edited in Adobe Camera Raw, our test images looked very pleasing to the eye even at ISO6400. Granted, there’s some luminance (grain-like) noise present, but it’s well controlled and has a fine structure. There’s hardly any chroma (color) noise present, and while saturation suffers a touch at this sensitivity, the overall result is very good.

ISO100

ISO800

ISO6400

Knock the sensitivity up another couple of notches, to ISO25,600, and saturation and detail deteriorate, while noise becomes very noticeable. We’d avoid using this setting where possible, although images will still be just about usable if you have to shoot in poor light and it’s your only option.

Dynamic range is better than we’ve seen from the T6s / 760D, but the latitude available to recover detail in the shadows and highlights isn’t quite a match for rivals like the D5600 or X-T20.

The EOS 77D delivers pleasing JPEG colors, though they can perhaps look a little muted when up against rivals with more punchier color output. If you want to give your JPEGs a little more 'bite', opt for one of the Picture Styles, or shoot raw for complete control.

Verdict

The EOS 77D is a very capable DSLR, but it's a hard camera to get excited about. Don't get us wrong, it does a lot of things well: image quality is very good, while the Live View performance is the best we've seen in a DSLR. There's also the polished touchscreen controls, helpful interface and decent 45-point AF system.

However, there's no 4K video capture, the viewfinder offers only 95% coverage (and it's a cheaper pentamirror design as opposed to pentaprism) and the plasticky finish just doesn't chime with the price Canon wants for the camera. Mirrorless rivals have managed to use magnesium alloy if not on the entire body then at least on the top plate, so it's a shame the EOS 77D doesn't have this same tactile feel.

And that's the rub with the EOS 77D – there's nothing here that makes it stand out from the crowd. If you want an entry-level DSLR the Canon EOS Rebel T7i / 800D is the one to go for, while those looking for something more advanced should spend the extra to get the EOS 80D. There's also the likes of the Nikon D5600 and D7200 to consider, as well as Panasonic's Lumix G80 / G85 and the Fujifilm X-T20. Until the price drops, the EOS 77D sits in a small patch of no man's land.

Competition

]]>Sony Cyber-shot RX100 Vhttp://www.techradar.com/reviews/sony-rx100-v
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/sony-rx100-vWith a spec sheet that puts some high-end DSLRs to shame, the RX100 V is Sony’s most advanced premium compact yet.Fri, 24 Nov 2017 21:43:22 +0000techradar.comWith smartphones pretty much destroying the low-end compact camera market, manufacturers have had to work hard to keep people’s interest in this sector.

Rather than opting to compete directly with smartphones, Sony hit on the idea of producing a high-end, premium compact camera that delivered much better images than smartphones, but without the bulk of a mirrorless camera or DSLR.

The RX100 arrived back in 2012, and since then we’ve seen another four models, including this latest Mark V version – you certainly can’t knock Sony’s enthusiasm.

But with so many updates arriving in a relatively short space of time, does this latest model offer the photographer anything new – especially when all four previous iterations are still available?

Features

1.0-inch CMOS sensor, 20.1MP

24-70mm f/1.8-2.8 zoom lens

4K video capture

While it may share the same 20MP resolution as the original RX100, the 1.0-inch sensor in the RX100 V is a quite different beast. Using the same stacked Exmor R back-illuminated CMOS sensor technology that we first saw in the RX100 IV, Sony says it has tweaked the chip, while the clever stacked sensor design means it has memory chips built right onto the back of the sensor.

This means data doesn’t have to flood out to the edge of the sensor, and, coupled with a new LSI chip, it means the sensor can deliver incredibly fast readout speeds.

This enables one of the key improvements in the RX100 V over the IV, with the latest version capable of shooting at an incredible 24fps compared to a still-snappy 16fps. What’s even more striking is the fact that it can do this at full resolution with continuous AF and auto exposure.

The fast 24-70mm f/1.8-2.8 zoom lens remains the same, and while it’s not quite as fast as the lens on the Panasonic LX10 / LX15, which has a 24-72mm f/1.4-2.8 optic, you’re still getting a high-quality Zeiss-branded standard zoom lens.

Unlike in its A6500, which was announced at the same time as the RX100 V, Sony hasn’t been tempted to bring touchscreen functionality to this camera's rear 3.0-inch display, which seems quite an oversight for a camera of this type, especially as its closest rivals sport this feature.

The resolution of the vari-angle screen also remains the same as on the IV at 1,299,000 dots, and it also has the same range of movement: 180 degrees outwards and upwards, and 45 degrees downwards.

The concealed pop-up electronic viewfinder that we first saw on the RX100 III carries over to the V, with the 0.39-type EVF sporting a 2.36-million-dot resolution, again the same as on the IV.

While the RX100 IV was capable of shooting 4K video footage, the V takes this one step further. Now oversampled from 5.5K (5,028 x 2,828 pixels), footage promises to be even sharper that we saw from the RX100 IV, while the even faster sensor readout that enables the RX100 V to shoot at 24fps should also suppress the effect of rolling shutter (that horrible jello effect when shooting some moving subjects) in captured footage.

This also has a benefit when shooting stills. While the RX100 V has a mechanical shutter that can be used with shutter speeds up to 1/2000 sec, there’s also an electronic shutter that kicks in at speeds above that, up to 1/32000 sec.

The faster readout speed from the sensor and LSI reduces any distortion that may occur in fast-moving subjects, as the scene is scanned on the sensor from top to bottom, rather than a whole snapshot of the scene being taken with a mechanical shutter. This is important because to achieve that rapid 24fps, the RX100 V has to use its electronic shutter; there’s an option to solely use the mechanical shutter, but this is limited to 10fps.

Build and handling

Solid metal construction

Design remains virtually identical to RX100 IV

Weighs 299g

Sit the RX100 V next to its predecessor – or the RX100 III for that matter – and with the exception of the model number you’d be hard pressed to tell them apart. The pocket-sized metal body is pretty much exactly the same, and follows the same minimalist design we first saw on the original RX100.

It’s certainly a sleek, understated-looking compact, with the high-end, premium feel you’d expect from a camera of this calibre.

However, sticking with the same design ethos also means Sony continues to determinedly avoid putting any form of handgrip on the front, which is a shame, because the smooth finish doesn’t deliver the secure grip we’d like, especially when you compare it to the Canon G7 X Mark II, which has a raised and textured grip to provide a much more satisfying hold.

There are aftermarket solutions – including some from Sony itself, like the AG-R2 – but it would have been nice to have seen some effort to come up with a built-in solution on what is, after all, the fifth-generation model.

The RX100 V kicks into life either via a press of the On/Off button or when you release the pop-up viewfinder – there’s a sprung switch on the side of the camera that releases the EVF, and the front section then extends away from the casing before being locked into place.

It would be nice to see a little more resistance here, as we found that on occasion, especially if you’re wearing glasses, it's a little too easy to inadvertently push the viewfinder back into the housing when the camera is raised to your eye.

There’s a customisable control ring around the barrel of the lens to which you can assign a range of functions, but it does have its quirks. If you're shooting in aperture priority mode it’s intuitive to set the ring to adjust the aperture, but the rear control ring also defaults to this function, with exposure compensation accessed only once you’ve tapped downwards to activate it – it would be nice to see exposure compensation enabled here by default.

Swap to shutter priority mode and the control ring is disabled, requiring you to dive back into the overly complicated menu system to re-assign the functionality of it. You can still use the rear control ring to set the shutter speed, but it's frustrating that the front control ring can’t just swap automatically between aperture and shutter control when you switch between these two popular shooting modes.

Don’t get us wrong: there’s a wealth of customisation available with the RX100 V, but it can be unnecessarily fiddly getting to some settings

To make life simpler, the most straightforward setup we found was to set the front control ring to exposure compensation, and use the rear control ring to adjust either aperture or shutter speed, depending on which mode was selected.

Don’t get us wrong: there’s a wealth of customisation available with the RX100 V, but it can be unnecessarily fiddly getting to some settings, and perhaps it’s time Sony took another look at the control layout, which has remained pretty much unchanged since the original RX100, given that several new features have been added since the first model came out.

Autofocus

315-point phase-detection AF

5 focus area modes

Advanced focus tracking

Perhaps the biggest change from the RX100 IV is the arrival of a 315-point phase-detection AF system – something we’ve never seen before in a 1.0-inch sensor compact camera. Coverage is pretty impressive too, with most of the frame covered, with the exception of the extreme left and right edges.

That said, if you’re in Single AF mode you’re unlikely to appreciate the level of sophistication on offer from the AF, with the RX100 V relying on a hybrid AF system – phase-detect AF is used to initially snap the subject into focus, with contrast-detect taking over to fine-tune focus, so there’s a very brief delay (and we’re splitting hairs here) as the system monetarily hunts to acquire focus.

Select the Wide area AF option in Single AF mode, though, and you’ve got a fast and hassle-free way of getting your shots in focus, with the camera automatically deciding what part of the frame it wants to give prominence to.

If you need to give the RX100 V some direction you’ve got Center, Flexible Spot and Expand Flexible Spot (with the addition of eight points around the desired AF point to assist with AF) modes – with the latter two of these enabling you to manually move the AF point round the frame.

The RX100 V's AF system delivers snappy focusing

This is where a touchscreen interface would come in handy, as to shift the AF point round the frame you first have to hit the button in the center of the rear control ring, before toggling it round the frame to arrive at your desired point – and not forgetting to hit the central button again to exit AF point selection, otherwise you’re locked out of the RX100 V’s other shooting controls. It would be much easier and quicker to simply tap where you wanted to focus.

On top of that there’s Face Detection, which can be switched on and off within the menu.

Continuous AF is where things get interesting though, if a little complex given the multitude of settings at your disposal, especially as there’s the extra Lock-on AF focus mode added to the mix, with the choice of Lock-on Center, Flexible Spot and Expand Flexible Spot. There’s almost too much choice here.

Once the camera has locked onto your subject – once you’ve specified your subject that is, which isn’t always as straightforward as it may seem, with brightly colored subjects seeming to take precedence over the subject we pointed our AF point at – the speed at which it tracks your subject is impressive, and all this at 24fps.

Performance

24fps burst shooting

150-shot buffer at 24fps (Extra Fine JPEG)

220-shot battery life

While the Sony RX100 V’s 24fps burst shooting speed would make the likes of the Canon EOS-1D X Mark II and Nikon D5 blush, just as impressive is the fact that it can sustain this for 150 shots (Extra Fine JPEG) before it needs to take a breather, and for raw shooters, 72 continuous frames isn't to be sniffed at either.

When it comes to metering, meanwhile, keep the RX100 V set to Sony’s multi-zone mode and you’ll be rewarded with dependable results, only having to intervene in high-contrast lighting conditions, while the camera’s Auto White Balance does a decent job under a range of lighting conditions.

Considering how compact the viewfinder is, when you lift your eye up to the camera it’s a pleasant surprise to see how generous the field of view is

There are no complaints about the rear display either – Sony may have used the same-resolution screen since the first RX100, but clarity is great. And for those looking to shoot candids on the street, the ability to shoot at waist-level with the screen pulled outwards is most welcome – just remember to turn down the volume of the annoying AF confirmation beep first. Put a touchscreen interface on there, however, and things would be even better… come on Sony.

Considering how compact the viewfinder is, when you lift your eye up to the camera it’s a pleasant surprise to see how generous the field of view is. Don’t get us wrong – it’s nothing like we’ve seen in some recent mirrorless cameras, but it’ll certainly do the job.

Here’s the thing though: we found that we relied on the rear display much more than we’d thought we would, only resorting to the EVF on the odd occasion. Everybody’s style of shooting will be different, but it’s something to consider if you think this is a feature you can do without.

Battery life has taken a bit of a hit compared to the RX100 IV, down from 280 shots to just 220 (and 100 fewer than the RX100 III). This is perhaps due to the improvements in performance that Sony has carried out under the skin, but you’ll soon be getting a flashing red battery light should you get a bit trigger-happy with a series of 24fps high-speed shots.

Image quality

ISO125-12,800, expandable to 80-12,800

Image quality virtually identical to RX100 IV

Multiple picture effects

The results from the RX100 V are pretty much identical to those from its predecessor, but that’s no bad thing at all, with perhaps the only tangible difference being slightly more pronounced sharpening of JPEG files.

You can expect plenty of detail from the 20.1MP sensor when shooting at the lower end of the sensitivity range, with the camera outputting files at 5472 x 3648 pixels, allowing you to make an A3 print at 300dpi without the need to increase the size of the file.

It’s only when you increase the sensitivity beyond ISO400 that detail resolution begins to dip, and image quality only really begins to suffer at ISO6,400 and 12,800.

Image noise is nicely controlled at under ISO800, but above that you’ll start to see color noise encroach on the shadow areas of the image. That said, even at ISO3,200 images don’t look at all unsightly. There’s some color and luminance (grain-like in appearance) noise present, but that’s to be expected. We certainly wouldn’t have an issue using this setting – and raw files offer even more scope for noise control should you need it – although we’d avoid the top end of the scale as far as possible.

Unlike with smaller-sensor compacts, it's possible to effectively isolate a subject from their background

Dynamic range is also very impressive, and the RX100 V has a host of Dynamic Range Optimizer settings; even with JPEG files we found it was possible to recover plenty of detail post-capture, especially in the shadows, although for more natural-looking results we’d always prefer to do this in camera.

Verdict

The RX100 V is one of the most advanced compacts we’ve seen, with a specification dripping with advanced features that would shame some pricier mirrorless and DSLR cameras.

This isn't entirely a good thing however – the RX100 V is almost too advanced for its own good, and you have to question how many photographers actually need this level in performance in a pocket camera. Being able to burst-shoot at 24fps is great, but with a 2.9x optical zoom its application is pretty limited.

It can also be a frustrating camera to use on occasion. We don’t want to bang on about the absence of a touchscreen, but it would transform the handling, while the absence of a decent hand grip is also disappointing – at the very least the AG-R2 grip should be included in the box when you consider the RX100 V's price.

If it sounds like we’re being a bit harsh on the RX100 V, we’re not meaning to be. There’s no question that it’s a fabulous camera, and a brilliant showcase for some of Sony’s best camera tech, and it will certainly have a pull for those with deep pockets who are looking for a highly-capable compact stills and video camera. But there are more affordable alternatives out there which, while they might not offer the same jaw-dropping performance as the RX100 V, are still great premium compacts in their own right.

Competition

]]>Sony Alpha A6500http://www.techradar.com/reviews/sony-alpha-a6500
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/sony-alpha-a6500With advanced AF, substantial buffer capacity and 4K video, the A6500 is a great camera for a wide range of disciplines.Fri, 24 Nov 2017 21:25:00 +0000techradar.comThe Alpha A6500 is Sony's flagship APS-C mirrorless camera, and boy does it pack a lot of tech.

Sony left it just six months before updating the Alpha A6300 with the A6500, but while this might sound like a premature update, the Alpha 6500 gains a number of key features, including in-body image stabilization to further blur the line between Sony’s APS-C lineup and its Alpha 7 full-frame range of mirrorless cameras.

Sony has also equipped its new camera with a greatly enhanced buffer to make it a tempting proposition for shooting action, while there's also the welcome addition of a touchscreen interface. The inclusion of these new features makes the A6500 one of the most fully featured crop-sensor cameras on the market right now.

It’s notably the first Sony APS-C camera to come with 5-axis in-body image stabilization, just as we've seen with Sony's second-generation Alpha 7 series of cameras like the Alpha A7R II. And the great news is that this not only works with Sony's non-stabilized optics, but can be used in conjunction with Sony's OSS stabilized lenses.

Sony has also overhauled the buffer of the A6500, delivering a considerable boost in performance that sees the camera capable of capturing 307 full-size JPEG files or 107 raws, all at a quick 11fps burst rate – quite an improvement from the A6300's 44 JPEG and 22 raw limit.

That's still a far cry from the Nikon D500's bottomless 200-raw buffer, but it beats out most cameras – including absolutely crushing the Canon EOS 7D Mark II's buffer capacity of 31 raw files.

A faster large-scale integration (LSI) chip and image processing algorithm improve texture reproduction while reducing noise. With this new chipset and code, the A6500 specifically produces less noise in the mid-to-high portions of the camera’s ISO100-25,600 (expandable up to ISO51,200) sensitivity range.

The Alpha 6500 also gains a touchscreen (though resolution remains at the same 921k-dots), allowing you to change your focus point on the fly, which can be really useful when shooting video.

Likewise, there's the same XGA OLED Tru-Finder, with a 2.36-million dots resolution and 120hz maximum refresh rate, as on the A6300, although the eye cup is a little softer.

While the Sony Alpha A6500 gains no additional video capabilities over its predecessor, it basically comes with everything the videographer could want.

You have 4K (3840 x 2160) at 25p and 30p recording in a Super 35mm format. In this mode, the camera uses its entire sensor to capture 6K source to avoid cropping. The oversampled video data is then crunched down to a final 4K output with enhanced depth and detail.

Full HD recording is also available if you want to deal with smaller files, and the option to go up to 120p means you can capture slow motion video.

Video professionals will also be glad to hear that the Sony A6500 samples 4K footage at 4.2.0 internally and 4.2.2 externally over HDMI. Plus it has all the flat picture profiles you would want for grading footage later.

Despite the wealth of video features, we're disappointed to see that, as on the A6300, there's no headphone jack on this camera. In order to monitor your audio you'll need to keep a close eye on levels on-screen, or plug in an external monitor with an audio-out.

Build and handling

Magnesium alloy construction

Practically identical to the Sony A6300

Weighs 453g (1lb)

Outwardly, the Sony A6500 is largely identical to its predecessor. It’s still a half-metal, half-plastic construction built around a magnesium frame, while components such as the power switch, battery hatch and controls are plastic.

The A6500 is a smidge thicker than the A6300, at 53mm compared with 49mm, to accommodate the in-body image stabilization system; both cameras are 120mm wide and 67mm tall. The extra components also add 49 grams to the weight, bringing the A6500 in at 453g (1lb).

A deeper grip is one notable change that we actually appreciate, as it allows us to get a better hold of the camera. Where the A6300 had a single custom function button to the right of the shutter button, the A6500 has two, both located between the shutter button and the mode dial.

Because of relatively clean design on the top of the camera, the A6500 is able to offer both a built-in flash and a multi-interface shoe in addition to the electronic viewfinder, together with two large dials – a command dial and another for changing the shooting mode.

As we've seen with the A6300, the back of the A6500 follows a tried-and-tested formula, with a handful of well-marked controls and the loosely moving control wheel enabling you to navigate menus and scrutinize images with ease.

The 3.0-inch display pulls away easily from the back of the camera, while it's stiff enough to remain in the position to which it's adjusted. That limited versatility of the touchscreen control is disappointing though - it’s only useful for changing the focus point while taking photos and video, although you can also use it as a touchpad to change your focusing point while looking through the viewfinder – a feature we’ve seen on the Fujifilm X-T20 and Olympus Pen-F. If you're wanting to swipe through photos, pinch to zoom and have more interaction with on-screen controls, forget it.

The menu system is comprehensive, with 35 separate screens, but thankfully this time Sony's decided to color-code them - something missing from the A6300, making it a bit easier to find what you need.

Autofocus

425 phase-detect AF points

169 contrast-detect AF points

0.05 sec AF speed

The Sony Alpha A6500 inherits one of the densest AF system going, coming equipped with the same 4D Focus system we loved so much on the A6300. 425 phase-detect AF points combined with 169 additional contrast-detect points enable the camera to find focus incredibly quickly.

We tested the AF on a variety of subjects, from ice hockey to fast and erratic moving drones, and the A6500's AF system did a spectacular job of finding focus and staying locked on. It's an impressive system that you can really rely on.

Performance

As we’ve mentioned, the Sony A6500 is a veritable speed demon, thanks to processing speeds being comprehensively boosted over the A6300.

The A6500 has been treated to the Alpha A99 II’s potent processing engine. This gives the A6500 a burst shooting buffer of up to 307 JPEGs when shooting at 8fps, giving you 35 seconds of firepower. Alternatively, at 11fps the camera can capture 200 JPEGs in a single bout or 107 raws.

The A6500's multi-zone metering system didn't get thrown by tricky lighting either, metering perfectly on the dot without any overexposure or underexposure.

Battery life on the Sony A6500 is average at best

As with most Sony cameras we've tested recently, the A6500's auto white balance can be a little sticky and doesn't change instantaneously, although it does adapt faster than previous models. There are about a dozen white balance modes, including three custom settings which you can meticulously tweak to the right color temperature and tint.

Battery life on the Sony A6500 is average at best. Although it's rated for 350 shots, we only got through about half an evening of shooting images and a few minutes of 4K footage. You'll need to pick up a few spare batteries, especially if you plan to shoot Ultra HD movies, which drains the camera at a rate of 1% per minute of video.

Image quality

ISO100-25,600, expandable to 51,200

Good quality JPEGs straight from camera

6,000 x 4,000 image size

Sony’s 24.2MP APS-C Exmor CMOS sensor delivers outstanding performance in the A6300, so it’s no surprise that it’s been carried over to the A6500. In terms of image quality, the Sony A6500 is an amazing camera for stills.

The quality of JPEGs straight out of the camera is very good, with images displaying good levels of sharpness and contrast, while the A6500's DRO system does well to slightly bring up shadow areas, to make images more suitable for immediate use.

As we've seen with the A6300, image noise is generally very well controlled across the sensitivity range when shooting JPEGs, and images are perfectly usable even at higher settings such as ISO6400. We suggest though using the A6500's Low noise reduction setting as the camera's Normal noise reduction setting appears somewhat heavy handed in its approach to high-ISO images.

We used the A6500 with Sony's excellent Sony E 16-70mm f/4 Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar T* ZA OSS zoom lens and found the level of detail in raw files to be very impressive, while the camera's dynamic range doesn't disappoint either. It's possible to brighten the image a good amount to recover shadow detail without unwanted noise ruining the shot.

Verdict

We might be able to count the Sony A6500's five new features on one hand, but they add up to a much faster and robust camera than was the A6300. Of course, it would've been nice if these features had debuted in the A6300; however, if you’ve been waiting for an APS-C Sony with nearly the same capabilities as the company’s full-frame A7 Mark II, this is it.

Despite our reservations about the fiddly controls and dense menu system, no other camera does as much as the Sony A6500 does, and while being more affordable to boot. It keeps up surprisingly well with many higher-end DSLRs and mirrorless cameras for sports – and if you’re looking to get serious with video, you won’t find a much better option.

Competition

]]>Canon EOS 5D Mark IVhttp://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/canon-eos-5d-mark-iv-1326906/review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/canon-eos-5d-mark-iv-1326906/reviewWith a rich line in innovation, we see if Canon's latest generation full-frame DSLR has what it takes.Fri, 24 Nov 2017 21:20:00 +0000techradar.comCanon's 5D series of cameras has a rich heritage – the original EOS 5D bought full-frame photography to the masses, the Mark II unleashed Full HD video capture for the first time on a DSLR, and while the Mark III didn't have quite the landmark features of its predecessors, its improved AF system made it one of the most complete DSLRs of recent times, loved by enthusiasts and pros alike.

Despite the range deviating a little since then, with the arrival of the 50.6MP 5DS for those wanting even more pixels, the arrival of a new generation of the 5D is a big deal.

Features

Full-frame CMOS sensor, 30.4MP

3.2-inch touchscreen, 1,620,000 dots

DCI 4K video capture

The 22.3MP sensor in the 5D Mark III was starting to look a little dated compared to some of the competition – it was actually only a minor bump-up in resolution from the 5D Mark II – so it's nice to see a notable jump to 30.4MP here.

That's not quite rivalling the 36.3MP Nikon D810 or 42MP Sony Alpha 7R II, but files still come out at 6720 x 4480 pixels, meaning that if you want to print at 300dpi the native size is just under A2 at 56.9 x 37.9cm (22.4 x 14.9 inches), while those looking for even more pixels have the option of the 50.6MP 5DS.

The 5D Mark IV is also using the same latest-generation sensor technology that we've seen in both the 1D X Mark II and 80D, with on-chip digital-to-analogue conversion, which should deliver improved noise performance as well as broader dynamic range.

That's not the whole story as far as image quality goes though, with the arrival of Dual Pixel Raw technology giving photographers the capacity to fine-tune the area of maximum sharpness.

With each pixel made up of two photodiodes, it allows for the creation of a file which contains a pair of images with two very slightly different focus points. You can then open the file in Canon's Digital Photo Professional software, and use Image Micro-adjustment to shift the focus ever so slightly; not massively, but Canon believes there's the potential to rescue some shots using this technology.

As you'd expect, the file size increases dramatically, from 37MB to 67MB – and you will have to use Canon's rather clunky DPP software.

The native sensitivity runs from ISO100-32,000, and is expandable to 50-102,400. Impressive though this is, this expanded range is actually identical to the 5D Mark III's, although Canon reckons it has enhanced the noise-processing algorithm for improved results at higher sensitivities, while it's also a stop more than one of this camera's closest competitors, the Nikon D810.

The Canon EOS 5D Mark IV uses both a DIGIC 6 and a DIGIC 6+ processor, with the former used solely for metering, freeing up the DIGIC 6+ processor to handle everything else, including the 61-point AF system with 41 cross-type sensors (five of which are dual cross-type for even greater accuracy).

The AF system is sensitive down to -3EV (-4EV in Live View) – that's darker than moonlight, so focusing shouldn't be an issue in poor light, while the fact that you can use lens/teleconverter combinations with a maximum aperture of f/8 and still have the luxury of all 61 AF points (21 cross-type) will be a real draw for sports and wildlife photographers.

The 5D Mark IV also inherits Canon's Dual Pixel AF technology, meaning there are phase-detection points on the imaging sensor itself, promising quicker AF acquisition than we saw in the 5D Mark III, and performance as speedy as in a lot of mirrorless cameras.

The large 3.2-inch display boasts an impressive 1,620,000 dots and touchscreen functionality, as on the 1D X Mark II. The difference, though, is that while the touchscreen was only active during Live View on the 1D X Mark II, the touchscreen interface on the 5D Mark IV is active all the time, enabling menu navigation and image review as well.

Canon has also kept the same battery as in the 5D Mark III, which might not seem that big a deal, but it's a shrewd move, meaning that existing users looking to use both cameras in tandem don't need two sets of batteries and chargers.

Canon created its own micro industry when the 5D Mark II came along with Full HD video, but the video landscape has changed quite a bit since then, with the likes of Sony and Panasonic getting their act together in this area, so it's no surprise to see Canon fighting back here with the inclusion of 4K video.

To be more precise, the 5D Mark IV features DCI 4K video capture at 4096 x 2160 pixels, at 30/25/24fps (approx 500Mbps). This also means you can extract 8.8MP JPEG images from 4K video if needed, thanks to the Motion JPEG file format available for 4K capture.

This is the only file format available when shooting 4K however, while there's no option to shoot in a flat gamma profile. Things do get better at 1080p, with a host of Full HD options, as well as the ability to shoot 120fps HD video for some impressive slow-mo movies.

The 5D Mark IV has external microphone and headphone ports, as well as HDMI Mini out and USB 3.0 terminals.

Finally, the 5D Mark IV sports dual SD and CompactFlash card slots accepting fast UDMA 7 cards, and features both Wi-Fi and NFC connectivity for transferring images to a compatible device – and that's not forgetting the built-in GPS unit.

Build and handling

Magnesium alloy and polycarbonate construction

Dust and weather-sealed

Weighs 800g

At first glance the 5D Mark IV bares a striking resemblance to the outgoing Mark III (and for that matter the 5DS and 5DSr), and there's a simple reason for that. In a nutshell, Canon doesn't want existing 5D users to have to, as they say, 're-learn' the new camera, and so aims to keep the transition as hassle-free as possible.

That said, there have been numerous tweaks and refinements to the body. The hand grip has been enlarged for starters, providing an even more satisfying hold when you pick the camera up, while the pentaprism now stands slightly taller to accommodate the GPS unit.

Despite cramming more tech into the body, the engineers at Canon have managed to cut the weight of the 5D Mark IV by 50g compared with the Mark III, while at the same time improving the weatherproofing, with extra grommets and seals.

The reduction in weight hasn't compromised the overall feel of the camera; it certainly feels incredibly well put together, and ready for the rigours of professional use, with a combination of magnesium alloy and polycarbonate for the body, plus a glass fibre prism cover.

While it looks a little different to the sprung lever we first saw on the EOS 7D Mark II, the 5D Mark IV now features a customisable button just below the joypad on the rear of the body. This can be assigned to perform a multitude of functions in conjunction with the front command dial – a useful option would be to set it to control ISO, allowing you to toggle the sensitivity without having to take your eye away from the viewfinder.

As you'd expect for a camera that's in its fourth generation, handling is very polished (and much improved for the extra functionality in the touchscreen – more on that in a bit), so existing Canon users should feel right at home, although photographers shooting with the 5D Mark IV alongside a 1D Mark II may end up inadvertently pressing a wrong button or two because of the slightly different assignment of controls.

Autofocus

61-point AF, 41 cross-type AF points

21 cross-type AF points at f/8

Dual Pixel CMOS AF for Live View

As you'd expect for a camera that sports a virtually identical AF configuration to the flagship 1D X Mark II (Canon is at pains, though, to state that the systems aren't completely identical, with some different internal components being used), AF performance doesn't disappoint.

The 5D Mark IV's 61-point AF system performed very well and tracking fast moving subjects

The AF is linked to the 5D Mark IV's metering system, with the latter helping to detect and track not only coloured objects, but perform face recognition as well. In the scenarios we tested it under, the AF tracking performed very well, locking on and following our chosen subject.

We found that Zone AF performed well in our tests – when it's selected alongside one of the six Case Studies that tailors the AF to take into account the speed, sensitivity and how erratic your subject is moving, you have a formidable combination.

Coverage is good, and better than in the 5D Mark III, but there's still a noticeable bias towards the centre of the frame. That minor quibble aside though, the AF system performs brilliantly.

The six AF Case Studies let you tailor the autofocus to the subject you're photographing

Shooting in Live View, the Dual Pixel AF is a huge improvement over the relatively sluggish system on the 5D Mark III, with focusing pretty much instantaneous, making it a much more valuable feature to have than it has been in the past. For those shooting video and wanting to work quickly with autofocus, Movie Servo AF delivers a pleasing transition as you re-focus during recording.

Performance

7fps burst shooting

150,000 pixel RGB+IR metering sensor

Intelligent Viewfinder II technology

The 5D Mark IV gets Canon's 252-zone RGB+IR metering system with Intelligent Scene Analysis (also seen in the 5DS, but different from that found in the 1D X Mark II), and it's all the better for it compared to the older iFCL system found in the 5D Mark III.

The system weights the exposure to the active AF point, but compared to the Mark III it does a better job of assessing the entire scene as a whole to deliver an exposure that's well balanced, with only high-contrast scenarios throwing up issues, which is to be expected.

There are no nasty surprises with the 5D Mark IV's white balance system either, with the system performing very well. There's a choice of either Ambience or White priority Auto settings, with the latter delivering neutral images even under tungsten lighting, while Ambience priority has a bias to retain some warmth in the image.

Metering coped very well under a range of lighting conditions

As you'd expect from a full-frame DSLR, the 5D Mark IV features a large and bright viewfinder with 100% coverage. As well as displaying key shooting info along the bottom, it also benefits from what Canon terms Intelligent Viewfinder II technology.

This enables you to display an electronic level, along with grid lines and a host of other key shooting info that you might wish to have fed back to you when you have the camera raised to your eye. You can select what is and isn't displayed in the set-up menu, with battery level, shooting mode, white balance, drive mode, AF, metering, image quality, Digital Lens Optimizer, Dual Pixel RAW and Flicker detection to choose from.

Moving on to the rear display, thanks to the impressive resolution it has to be one of the sharpest screens out there. It also makes composing shots in Live View a piece of cake – even when we used a very dense 10-stop Lee Filters Big Stopper the display was incredibly clear, with no noticeable signal noise present to make framing-up difficult.

The excellent rear display makes it very easy to compose shots, even when using a dense 10-stop neutral density filter

There were times while we were testing the 5D Mark IV when a vari-angle screen would have been welcome, especially when composing low-angle shots, but the clarity and excellent viewing angle of the display makes this omission less of an issue than with some other cameras.

That's not forgetting the touchscreen interface, which we have to say is a very welcome addition. With touch control over both the main and Quick Menus, it makes the 5D Mark IV's comprehensive menus much quicker to navigate, while the ability to pinch-to-zoom, as well as swipe through images, makes things that much quicker when using the camera out in the field.

The burst rate is a respectable 7fps – a little notch further to 8fps might have felt like a bit more of a jump from the 5D Mark III's 6fps, but the Mark IV can now sustain this for a pretty decent 21 raw files before the buffer needs to take a breather (if you're shooting JPEGs, the capacity is unlimited) – that's up on the 5D Mark III's 18 raw files at 6fps (and that was at a lower resolution too).

With the same LP-E6N battery as the 5D Mark III, it's good for around 900 shots on a single charge. We used the camera heavily, using a range of features and the display quite a bit, and while 900 shots would be a bit optimistic, we'd certainly be happy heading out for the day with a single battery.

Image quality

ISO100-32,000, expandable to 50-102,400 (H2)

Built-in low-pass filter

+/-5 EV exposure compensation in 1/3 or 1/2 stop increments

It's no surprise to find that the results from the new 30.4MP sensor display excellent levels of detail – not quite as much as the staggering files from the 5DS, but still very good indeed. You should have no problems producing richly detailed prints at Super A3, while A2 prints and beyond are a realistic proposition – that's not forgetting the ability to tightly crop images if needed.

The level of detail from the 30.4MP sensor is very impressive

With the increase in resolution over the 5D Mark III, there is the worry that results will display more noise, especially in the upper reaches of the sensitivity range, but we're pleased to report that high ISO performance is very good.

Results at ISO800 still appear noise-free in our sample images, while even at ISO2000 results are very impressive – there are some signs of luminance noise, but it looks very organic, while there's no evidence of chroma (color) noise.

In our samples shot at ISO10,000 chroma noise is noticeable, along with more pronounced luminance noise, although it was possible to reduce this in raw files using Canon's DPP software.

This is surely thanks in part to the arrival of on-chip digital-to-analogue conversion, which not only brings an improved noise performance over the 5D Mark III, but also delivers better dynamic range.

Raw files can be pushed further in post-processing, allowing you to intentionally underexpose shots to preserve highlight detail secure in the knowledge that you can recover lost shadow detail later without your shot being ruined by the introduction of image noise.

Verdict

While the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV may look underwhelmingly familiar to the model in supersedes at first sight, don't be fooled – the engineers at Canon haven't stood still.

Compared to the EOS 5D Mark III, pretty much every element has been tweaked and improved upon. The full-frame 30.4MP sensor might not quite grab the headlines like those of some rivals, but it's still a welcome boost in resolution compared to the 22.3MP of the EOS 5D Mark III, while the improved noise and dynamic range performance make it an even more tempting proposition for those users thinking of upgrading.

And if you do upgrade, you'll get a camera that you can feel instantly at home with, while enjoying a number of improvements – the AF system is better for starters, with the Dual Pixel AF in Live View a huge leap forward. The touchscreen functionality improves handling considerably, while performance is also that much better.

It's certainly no surprise to see DCI 4K video capture, although the 1.64x crop of the sensor does make it hard to get those wide-angle shots; and while there is support for clean HDMI out at 1080p, it's not supported for 4K.

Those video irritations aside, the only other major stumbling block is the fairly hefty price, especially in the UK. However, if you can justify the outlay, then the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV has to be one of the most well-rounded and complete DSLRs we've seen. Suited to a range of subjects, from landscapes to sports and wildlife, it'll perform superbly in any situation.

Competition

]]>Canon EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D reviewhttp://www.techradar.com/reviews/canon-eos-rebel-t7i-eos-800d-review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/canon-eos-rebel-t7i-eos-800d-reviewCanon overhauls its entry-level DSLR with a few welcome touches, while making it easier to use than ever.Fri, 24 Nov 2017 20:54:23 +0000techradar.comThe Canon EOS Rebel T7i (EOS 800D outside the US) is the latest in a long line of entry-level Canon DSLRs that can chart their heritage back to the original EOS Digital Rebel (EOS 300D) that arrived back in 2003.

Since then, the various iterations and updates that have come and gone have been firm favorites with both new and more experienced users alike.

Canon's current EOS Rebel T6i / EOS 750D has established itself as one of our favourite entry-level DSLRs. It's packed with a range of features perfect for the new user, while the polished handling makes it a pleasure to use.

But that camera is now two years old and beginning to show its age, and with Nikon updating its entry-level range with the likes of the D3400 and D5600, and with a slew of new mirrorless rivals from various manufacturers being thrown into the mix, an update from Canon was always on the cards.

The EOS Rebel T7i / 800D offers a number of improvements over its predecessor, although not all of them are obvious from a glance at the spec sheet,so let's take a closer look at the Rebel T7i / 800D…

Features

APS-C CMOS Sensor, 24.2MP

3.0-inch vari-angle touchscreen, 1,040,000 dots

1080p video capture

While the EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D sports the same 24.2MP resolution as the Rebel T6i / EOS 750D it replaces, the sensor has been overhauled we’re told, and uses the same technology we've seen in the EOS 80D.

Canon wouldn't elaborate on what exactly has changed, but we can speculate that it uses the same on-chip digital-to-analogue conversion technology that we've seen in the EOS 5D Mark IV to handle noise better.

The new sensor is partnered with a new DIGIC 7 image processor. We've seen a DIGIC 7 chip already in the likes of Canon's PowerShot G7 X II compact camera, but this is quite a different proposition. Canon claims it can handle 14 times more information than the DIGIC 6 processor that was in the T6i / 750D, which again should help deliver a better high-ISO noise performance, as well as an improved autofocus performance too.

We'll look at the autofocus in more detail a little later, but sensitivity-wise the Rebel T7i / 800D offers a range of ISO100-25,600 – that's an extra stop over the T6i’s expanded 12,800 ISO ceiling, while there’s a Hi setting equivalent to ISO51,200 also available. You’ll just have to select this in the custom setting.

Canon has opted to stick with the same 3.0-inch, vari-angle touchscreen display with a resolution of 1,040,000 dots. A slight boost in resolution, or increase in size to 3.2-inches (matching the Nikon D5600), would have been welcome here, but perhaps Canon may have felt improvements were unnecessary here, as it’s already one of the most polished touch interfaces out there.

It's perhaps a little underwhelming to see only Full HD capture

With 4K video capture becoming more of a standard feature on cameras, especially the mirrorless rivals which the Rebel T7i / 800D will be going up against, it's perhaps a little underwhelming to see only Full HD capture offered.

Footage can be captured at up to 60p though, up from the T6i / 750D’s 30p, while Canon has equipped the Rebel T7i / 800D with a 5-axis image stabilization system for shooting hand-held footage. Designed to work with video but not stills, the system is designed to counter unwanted camera movement, while IS-equipped lenses will also work in conjunction with the system.

There’s also a 3.5mm stereo microphone jack port, but no headphone port to monitor audio – something that’s pretty standard on cameras at this price point.

The T6i / 750D supported Wi-Fi and NFC connectivity, and the T7i / 800D builds on this. There's now the option to set up a low-energy Bluetooth connection so that you can always be connected to the camera. We’ve seen something similar with Nikon’s SnapBridge connectivity, enabling you to remotely transfer images from your camera to a compatible smart device.

Canon's Camera Connect app also lets you wake the camera from its slumber (provided you haven't turned the camera fully off), as well as browse photos and operate the camera remotely. The Camera Connect app itself has also been updated to make it more user-friendly, and to help guide you through the controls.

New 18-55mm lens

The arrival of the EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D also heralds a new 18-55mm kit lens that’ll be offered as a starter kit with the camera. The Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/4-5.6 IS STM is 20% smaller than its predecessor, and a little slower (the older lens had a variable maximum aperture of f/3.5-5.6) thanks to its collapsible design, but offers up to four stops of image stabilization. As we’ve got our hands on one of the first T7i / 800D’s available we’re using the older lens for this review, but we'll update once the new optic becomes available.

Build and handling

Aluminum alloy and polycarbonate construction

Design little changed from previous models

Weighs 532g

Like the Rebel T6i, the T7i features a aluminum alloy and polycarbonate construction, but has managed to shave about 20g from the weight of the camera, which tips the scales at 532g with a battery and card.

However, while we don’t doubt that the quality of the construction of this camera is very good, the predominantly matt plastic exterior finish of the camera just doesn’t feel that nice to the touch. If we’re being harsh, it feels quite cheap, especially when compared to mirrorless rivals like the Panasonic Lumix G80/G85 and Fujifilm X-T20.

While it's not going to trouble most mirrorless rivals when it comes to size, the T7i / 800D is still pretty compact, while the textured hand grip is pleasingly deep, allowing you to get a firm grasp on the camera.

Design-wise, little has changed from its predecessor, with minor tweaks to the rear of the camera. The indent to release the rear vari-angle display is now next to the viewfinder, rather than to the right-hand side, while the left-hand side of the viewfinder has a slightly gentler slope to it. Otherwise the design is almost identical, with the same control layout as the T6i / 750D. This is no bad thing though, as the T6i / 750D is a nice camera to use.

There’s a decent (but not overwhelming) amount of body-mounted controls dotted around the camera. On the top plate are a single command dial and dedicated controls for ISO, autofocus and display, while there’s a host of regularly used settings on the rear.

There’s also a Quick menu that's accessed by pressing the Q button. This gives you rapid access to some key features that can either be adjusted using the camera’s physical buttons and dials, or by touching the screen to toggle between settings. We reckon that even if you’re not used to using a touchscreen on a camera, it’ll soon become second-nature to you – the EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D’s touchscreen interface is very intuitive, and integrated seamlessly with the camera’s menu system.

The vari-angle display offers a useful range of movement to assist in a range of shooting situations

The T7i / 800D uses a cheaper pentamirror design (rather than the pentaprism that’s used in more advanced DSLRs) that shows approximately 95% of the scene as on the D5600. The display is nice and bright (if a little cramped), but you'll need to take care when composing shots to avoid unwanted elements encroaching on the edges of the frame – we found on a couple of occasions when reviewing shots on the rear display that annoying stray elements had crept in.

If you're going to be relying on the rear touchscreen more when composing shots, the good news is that you get 100% coverage here. Clarity and sharpness are good, while the vari-angle display offers a useful range of movement to assist in a range of shooting situations.

Autofocus

45-point AF, all cross-type

Sensitive down to -3EV

Dual Pixel AF for Live View

The EOS Rebel T6i / EOS 750D employed Canon's tried and tested 19-point phase-detect AF system, which was starting to look a little dated even when it was launched a couple of years back. Canon has overhauled this for the Rebel T7i / 800D, upping the coverage to 45 points – and that's not the whole story, as Canon has also made all 45 points cross-type for more accurate AF.

(Cross-type sensors are sensitive in both the horizontal and vertical planes, so when the camera's focusing it's more likely to lock onto its target than a sensor that's sensitive to one plane, which can mean you have to rotate the camera to achieve focus.)

As well as this, focusing is sensitive down to -3EV, so even in poor light you shouldn't have any issues. We test the AF under poor artificial light and it performed well, only struggling when presented with some almost pitch-black conditions. Finally, 27 of the AF points are sensitive even at wider apertures down to f/8 – perfect if you're planning to use a moderately slow lens and teleconverter together.

The T7i / 800D's focusing system delivers solid performance

The T7i / 800D’s phase-detect system works very well – focusing speed was pretty snappy even with the 18-55mm lens we used, while subject-tracking performance is noticeably better than the T6i / 750D, thanks to the 7560-pixel RGB+IR metering sensor that helps the AF system track subjects.

As there’s no dedicated joystick for AF point selection, this is done via the four-way button arrangement on the rear of the camera, which works pretty quickly, while there are four AF modes to choose from: selectable single point, Zone AF (uses 9 AF points in a selectable block), Large Zone AF (can select the central 15 AF points, or the 15 points either side) or Auto Selection AF (uses the entire coverage, with the camera selecting the AF points).

The Dual Pixel AF system impresses

The Rebel T7i / 800D also gets Canon's Dual Pixel AF for Live View photography and video capture. It's certainly a welcome improvement over Canon's rather clunky Hybrid CMOS AF III system, which was used in the older model and wasn’t a patch on its mirrorless rivals for speed and operability.

With 49 AF points arranged in a 7 x 7 grid, this new system is much improved and delivers smooth and fast focusing, especially when used in tandem with the touchscreen when selecting your desired point of focus. It’s so much better than the older system, and better than the system used by the Nikon D5600 – and good enough to trouble some mirrorless systems.

Performance

6fps burst shooting

User guide on camera

600-shot battery life

Thanks in part to the DIGIC 7 image processor, Canon has managed to boost the continuous shooting speed to 6fps in the T7i, up from the T6i's 5fps. It's a modest jump, though, and with mirrorless rivals offering faster burst shooting this is another area where it's a shame that Canon hasn't been tempted to try and squeeze out even more performance from the new camera.

Battery life has seen a big improvement though, and many mirrorless rivals would struggle to match the T7i / 800D's 600 shot capacity – up from the T6i's 440. There is a caveat though, as solely using the rear display, if that’s how you like to shoot, will see battery life drop to 270 shots, while it lags behind its closest rival, the Nikon D5600, which can take an extra 220 shots (820 in total) before the battery will need recharging.

Getting to grips with creative photography can be daunting for new users, which is where Nikon's graphical Guide Mode on the likes of the D3300 has done really well in the past, so it's welcome to see Canon introduce something similar on the T7i / 800D.

The T7i / 800D sports a new guide mode

Canon has introduced a clean-looking graphical interface that helps users by explaining settings, and offering advice on what effects each will have on the final shot. For instance, if you’re in Aperture Priority mode the display will illustrate what settings are needed for a blurred or sharp background, with additional info being displayed to help you further understand what’s going. For new users this will certainly be of benefit, while more more experienced users can disable this feature in the menu if they wish, and stick with Canon's more traditional menu system.

Metering is weighted to the AF point, so it can trick the metering on occasion, as here

The T7i / 800D uses the same 7560-pixel RGB+IR metering sensor as the T6i / 750D, with 63-zone Evaluative, Partial, Centre-weighted and Spot metering options. The evaluative system does a good job most of the time, but it’s worth keeping in mind that the weighting applied to the active AF point can mean you need to use exposure compensation in high-contrast situations; we experienced a couple of occasions where the same shot threw up two different exposures simply because we shifted the AF point slightly.

The white balance system performs very well, while the option of an Ambient Auto White Balance mode has its uses, delivering slightly warmer results that can be welcome, while White Priority can deliver clean, neutral results even in artificial lighting.

Image quality

ISO100-51,200

Noise performance much improved

Pleasing color rendition

The EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D's new 24MP APS-C CMOS sensor performs very well. While there's probably not much to choose between this new sensor and the one in the T6i / 750D in terms of out-and-out resolution, with both performing very well, it's improvements elsewhere that make the difference.

The 24MP sensor is capable of delivering a decent amount of detail

Perhaps the biggest improvement is in the way the camera handles noise. Images appeared very clean at low sensitivities and displayed good saturation, but it's further up the sensitivity range where the big improvements are evident.

Processed raw file at ISO1600

Raw files edited in Adobe Camera Raw looked very good, with images looking very clean even at ISO6400. While there's some luminance (grain-like) noise, it's very fine in structure, and there's hardly any noticeable chroma (color) noise present. Saturation has suffered a touch however, although it's still very good.

As you'd expect, image noise is much more pronounced at ISO25,600, with saturation and detail suffering on top of more noticeable noise. Despite this though, results are still pretty sound all things considered. We'd avoid using this setting where possible, but it does provide that bit of flexibility if you really need to get a shot in poor light.

As we've come to expect, colors are pleasing when it comes to JPEG output, although images arguably lack the 'bite' and clarity of some those from some rival cameras, so we'd suggest tweaking one of the Picture Styles or shooting raw.

Dynamic range is also that bit better, but still not quite a match for rivals – there's just not the same latitude in raw files to recover highlight and shadow detail as with, say, the D5600 or X-T20.

Dynamic range is improved, but still not quite a match for the best

This isn't unique to the EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D by any stretch, but to make the most of this camera you'll want to ditch the 18-55mm kit lens as soon as you can – there's some pretty pronounced distortion present, while sharpness could be better. Fortunately, there are a wealth of optics out there that will do the well-performing sensor justice.

Verdict

Canon is hardly rocking the DSLR boat with the new EOS Rebel T7i / 800D – although with the T6i / 750D proving such as success it would have been daft to start from scratch.

That said, there have been a number of welcome improvements. The new sensor impresses, with great performance at high ISOs, and delivers detail-rich images (though to get the best from the camera you'll want some decent glass).

The autofocus too is a decent improvement over the T6i / 750D, with a solid 45-point AF system that's backed up by excellent live view AF.

The newly designed graphical interface will certainly make the camera even more appealing to new users – combined with the logical control layout and polished touchscreen it makes for a hassle-free shooting experience.

It's disappointing not to see 4K video capture here though, especially as mirrorless rivals are now offering it, while perhaps the biggest disappointment is the camera's finish. While it's similar to previous models, the onslaught of mirrorless models that feel that much nicer in the hand, and the relatively high launch price, exacerbate this shortcoming.

If you can get over these issues though, and if you're looking for a well-rounded and easy to use camera with which to take your first steps in the world of DSLR photography, the EOS Rebel T7i / EOS 800D is certainly worth a look.

Competition

]]>Canon EOS 6D Mark II reviewhttp://www.techradar.com/reviews/canon-eos-6d-mark-ii-review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/canon-eos-6d-mark-ii-reviewCanon's 'affordable' entry-level full-frame DSLR gets a major overhaul, with a price to match.Fri, 24 Nov 2017 20:48:00 +0000techradar.comWe've been waiting quite a while for the Canon EOS 6D Mark II to arrive. In fact, it's some five years since the original Canon EOS 6D was announced – and at the time it was the most affordable full-frame DSLR available.

While it lacked some of the more desirable features found on Canon's pricier models further up the range, it offered users a pretty affordable way into full-frame photography.

Quite a lot's changed since the arrival of the EOS 6D though, with not only Nikon offering some very tempting competition in the shape of the D610 and D750, but Sony's Alpha A7 and A7 II offering another affordable route into full-frame photography.

So does the arrival of the EOS 6D Mark II shift the advantage back to Canon in the contest to attract those looking to make the switch to full-frame photography?

Features

Full-frame CMOS sensor, 26.2MP

3.0-inch vari-angle touchscreen, 1,040,000 dots

1080p video capture

As you'd expect after a five-year gap, the EOS 6D Mark II comes with a wealth of improvements over the EOS 6D.

Perhaps the headline change is the new sensor, with the EOS 6D Mark II sporting a 26.2MP CMOS sensor that not only offers a sizeable boost in resolution over the 20.2MP chip in the EOS 6D, but also a lot more pixels than the EOS 5D Mark III's 22.3MP sensor.

The new sensor brings with it a native sensitivity range of ISO100-40,000 which can be expanded to an equivalent of ISO50-102,400, matching the expanded sensitivity ranges of both the EOS 6D and EOS 5D Mark III.

While these cameras may all share the same ISO ceiling, the EOS 6D Mark II boasts Canon's latest DIGIC 7 processing engine, which is capable of processing information some 14 times faster than the previous DIGIC 6 (the EOS 6D featured the DIGIC 5 engine), and should see it handling image noise better at higher sensitivities.

It's also the first time the DIGIC 7 engine has been used in a full-frame EOS DSLR; until now it's only featured in some of Canon's recent APS-C DSLR bodies and PowerShot compact cameras.

One of the compromises with the original EOS 6D was its 97% viewfinder coverage – that 3% shortfall may not sound like much, but stray elements can still creep into the edge of the frame if you're not careful, and you're likely to only notice these once you're reviewing your images on the rear display.

The good news is that this stat has been improved on the EOS 6D Mark II – but only by 1%, to offer a coverage of 98%, so still not quite matching the likes of the D750's approximate 100% coverage.

While the viewfinder may seem like a minor improvement, the rear display is quite a different story. No longer sitting flush to the body as it did on the EOS 6D, the 3.0-inch vari-angle display can not only be pulled away from the body, it's also now touch-sensitive.

The expected trio of connectivity options – Wi-Fi, NFC and Bluetooth – are available, with the latter being a low-energy connection, meaning you can always be connected to the camera and enabling the rapid remote transfer of images from your camera to a compatible smart device.

Also on-board is Canon's five-axis digital image stabilization for hand-held video recording. Designed to work with video but not stills, the system works in conjunction with the brand's IS-equipped lenses.

Staying with movie capture, Canon has opted not to include 4K capabilities on the EOS 6D Mark II, instead limiting it to Full HD with frame rates up to 60p. That's an improvement on the 30p offered by the EOS 6D, but we're sure some people will be scratching their heads trying to work out why 4K capture has been left off the EOS 6D Mark II – especially as this is an area where Canon has excelled at in the past.

There is a 4K timelapse option however, which stitches images together into a 4K-resolution video. There's also a microphone input, although there's no headphone socket if you wish to monitor audio.

Build and handling

Aluminum alloy and polycarbonate body

Dust- and moisture-resistant

Weighs 765g

Like the original EOS 6D, the Canon EOS 6D Mark II is crafted from a mixture of aluminum alloy and polycarbonate with glass fiber, and while it doesn't have quite the same 'pro' feel as the likes of the EOS 5D Mark III or Mark IV, it nonetheless feels very well put together.

It's also nice to see the camera featuring dust and moisture seals – having used the 6D Mark II in some very wet conditions in Norway, with the camera getting drenched on more than one occasion, we can confirm that this camera will more than hold its own when the elements are against you.

Proportions-wise, the camera is ever so slightly more compact than the EOS 6D – those looking to upgrade from the older model may be a little disappointed to hear that the BG-E13 battery grip designed for the 6D isn't compatible with the EOS 6D Mark II, with a new BG-E21 battery grip accompanying the new camera.

The grip on the body of the 6D Mark II is excellently sculpted, and ensures the camera fits very comfortably in the hand, while the weight of 765g with battery and card in place is just 10g heavier than the original 6D (though it's actually not much lighter than the 800g EOS 5D Mark IV). It also felt very well balanced in the hand when teamed with the EF 24-105mm f/4L IS II USM we shot with.

As for the layout of buttons and controls, if you're coming from the EOS 6D you should feel right at home with the EOS 6D Mark II, as the control layout on the two cameras is pretty much identical.

There's a large LCD display on the top plate with plenty of information on tap, while there are controls for the AF, drive, ISO and metering between the LCD and the front command dial. The only new addition is a small button next to the command dial that affords access to the camera's focusing modes to complement the 6D Mark II's more sophisticated AF system.

Sticking with the same control layout as the EOS 6D means the EOS 6D Mark II forgoes a joypad on the rear of the camera to quickly move the AF point, as we've seen on some other EOS DSLRs; instead you use the multi-directional controller to do this. While it would have been nice to see this extra control incorporated into the camera, AF point selection is still pretty quick to achieve using this method.

That just leaves the rear display, which as we've mentioned can now be angled away from the body to suit a plethora of shooting angles. While its resolution doesn't get a boost over the display on the EOS 6D, the 1,040,000-dot screen looks decent enough, while the touch interface on the EOS 6D Mark II is one of the best around – from adjusting settings to flicking through images, it works a treat.

This shot was framed using the vari-angle display, with focus acquired using the touchscreen

Autofocus

45-point AF, all cross-type

Sensitive down to -3EV

Dual Pixel CMOS AF system

The 11-point AF system on the original EOS 6D looked out of date even when that camera was launched, and it came in for a bit of stick – particularly as only the central point sported a cross-type sensor. So it's no surprise to see the EOS 6D Mark II get a hefty bump in AF coverage.

Rather than borrowing the 61-point AF system from the EOS 5D Mark IV, the 6D Mark II looks to its APS-C stablemates and employs a 45-point AF system that's very similar to the one inside the recent EOS 80D and EOS Rebel T7i / 800D.

And the good news is that rather than featuring one lone cross-type point (cross-type points are sensitive in both the horizontal and vertical planes for greater accuracy), all 45 points are cross-type, with the central point being dual cross-type, featuring a second point oriented at 45 degrees to the regular point for even greater precision. Furthermore, 27 of these remain operational when using a lens, or lens/teleconverter combination, with a maximum effective aperture of f/8, with nine remaining cross-type.

The EOS 6D Mark II's AF locked on quickly to fast-moving subjects

The EOS 6D Mark II offers a decent amount of control over customizing the AF setup too, with some 16 options to tweak should you wish. However, there are no AF 'case studies' (which specify the tracking sensitivity, acceleration and deceleration tracking and AF point switching depending on the subject you're shooting) as we've seen on the likes of the EOS 7D Mark II and EOS 5D Mark IV.

Coverage of the 45 AF points is quite heavily weighted towards the central portion of the frame, meaning you'll have to regularly recompose shots if your subject is off-centre.

That aside, AF performance is very good. We shot under a variety of lighting conditions on our trip to Norway and found focusing to be very good, with subjects acquired swiftly and accurately in most instances. Even in poor light the EOS 6D Mark II didn't really struggle – thanks in part, no doubt, to the camera's AF system being sensitive down to -3EV.

The focusing system did a good job of tracking the car in front as we followed behind

The EOS 6D Mark II also gets Canon's impressive Dual Pixel CMOS AF for Live View photography and video capture. It's a big improvement over the EOS 6D's rather clunky system, delivering smooth and fast focusing, especially when used in tandem with the touchscreen to select your desired point of focus.

Performance

6.5fps burst shooting

Burst depth up to 21 raw frames / 150 JPEGs

1,090-shot battery life

It's no surprise to see that Canon has upped the burst rate of the EOS 6D Mark II to 6.5fps, from the 6D's 4.5fps. Not only that but the burst depth has also been improved, with the new camera capable of shooting 21 raw files in succession compared to its predecessor's 17.

Interestingly for those who like to shoot JPEGs, however, the 150-frame burst depth offered by the EOS 6D Mark II is actually quite a drop from the 1,250-shot limit on the EOS 6D, although a 150-frame burst depth is hardly limiting. It’s also interesting to see that Canon hasn't included UHS-II support for the EOS 6D Mark II's single card slot, which might have improved that number, although any benefit would depend on how quickly the camera can deal with the information to begin with.

Either way, this isn’t a camera aimed particularly at sports photographers, and 6.5fps is a very credible burst rate for a full-frame camera at this price point, potentially suiting it to situations where the original EOS 6D may have fallen short.

As we've found with other Canon DSLRs that use this system, the evaluative system does a sound job most of the time, but it’s worth keeping in mind that the weighting is applied to the active AF point, which can mean you need to use exposure compensation in high-contrast situations; we experienced a couple of occasions where the same shot threw up two different exposures simply because we shifted the AF point slightly.

The EOS 6D Mark II's auto white balance does a very good job. There are actually two auto white balance options: Ambient Priority mode delivers slightly warmer results, helping you retain the overall ambience of the scene, while White Priority can deliver clean, neutral results even under artificial lighting.

Canon has also added the flicker detection option we’ve seen on previous EOS DSLRs, to help maintain consistency when shooting under artificial light sources. This is great news for those shooting indoors, perhaps events or sports, where such lighting is commonly used.

Battery life is very good, with the LP-E6N unit rated for up to 1,200 shots. Over the course of two days of extensive shooting the 6D Mark II's battery status bar hardly budged.

Image quality

ISO100-40,000, expandable to 50-102,400

+/-5 EV exposure compensation in 1/3 or 1/2-stop increments

Disappointing dynamic range

The EOS 6D Mark II is unique at this level in that it features a 26.2MP sensor; 24MP is the norm, so the 6D Mark II has a 2MP edge over its closest rival, the Nikon D750. In reality though, this makes a negligible difference to the amount of extra detail the EOS 6D Mark II can resolve – it's comparable to the D750, allowing you to happily print A3+ images, and even squeeze out large prints if necessary.

The full-frame 26.2MP sensor produces good levels of detail

Looking at ISO performance and the EOS 6D Mark II puts in a solid, if unremarkable performance. JPEG files appear very clean throughout the ISO range, but when you look at the corresponding raw files, it becomes how much noise reduction is being applied to those JPEGs.

Raw files compare well to images from the EOS 5D Mark III, although we'd have expected things to have improved somewhat given the five-year gap in technology. Results at ISO800 hold up well, with minimal signs of noise, while results at ISO4000 are pretty good too; there are certainly signs of luminance noise at this sensitivity, but surprisingly little chroma noise (color speckling).

Beyond that, while both luminance and chroma noise become more pronounced, at ISO12,800 and with some post-processing it's still possible to get a satisfactory result, with a decent amount of detail; we'd probably avoid going any higher than that unless absolutely necessary.

At ISO4000, results hold up pretty well considering the sensitivity

Dynamic range is an area where Canon DSLRs have lagged behind a bit compared to rival cameras from Nikon and Sony, so there was a certain amount of expectation placed on the new 26.2MP sensor.

However, while it's possible to recover a good bit of lost detail (as above), noise is much more noticeable compared to a similar image from a Nikon D750 when you look closely. And what's more disappointing is the fact that the 24.2MP APS-C sensor used by the likes of the EOS 80D actually holds up slightly better when images taken at lower sensitivities are pushed in post-processing.

Verdict

With the EOS 6D Mark II Canon has certainly made some significant improvements over the outgoing EOS 6D, packing in a host of new features including a fresh sensor, a faster processor, a much more credible AF system and a stronger burst rate. It's a much more well-rounded and better specified camera than the EOS 6D, but it's not without its issues.

The poor dynamic range is disappointing, and while the boost in AF performance is definitely welcome, coverage is too heavily weighted to the centre. The lack of a 100% viewfinder is also a pity, and the fact that the model misses out on 4K video will disappoint some.

These issues take the shine off what is otherwise a very nice full-frame DSLR that's a pleasure to shoot with, with the vari-angle touchscreen a nice bonus. It will certainly please Canon users looking to make the move into full-frame photography, but others might be better served elsewhere.

Competition

]]>Canon EOS M5http://www.techradar.com/reviews/canon-eos-m5-dummy
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/canon-eos-m5-dummyCanon's latest mirrorless camera is a huge leap forward, but does it do enough to tempt new users? Fri, 24 Nov 2017 19:18:00 +0000techradar.comWhile Canon has, along with Nikon, long dominated the DSLR market, it has struggled to replicate that success with mirrorless cameras. The EOS M was underwhelming to say the least, with poor autofocus performance, while the EOS M3 and M10 haven't really progressed the range that much.

The arrival of the M5 could shake things up a bit though. Sitting at the top of Canon's (albeit still modest) mirrorless range, the M5 is designed to appeal to experienced users, with Canon hoping it will appeal to current higher-end EOS DSLR users looking for a more portable alternative to their DSLR.

Features

APS-C CMOS sensor, 24MP

3.2-inch tilt-angle touchscreen, 1,620,000 dots

1080p video capture

The EOS M5 sports an all-new 24.2MP APS-C CMOS sensor, though its DNA can be traced to the excellent sensor we’ve already seen in the EOS 80D enthusiast DSLR, with a sensitivity range running from 100-25,600.

The original EOS M suffered from a notoriously slow AF system, and while the EOS M3 featured a Hybrid CMOS AF III system that was a noticeable improvement over its predecessor, the EOS M5 takes advantage of Canon's latest sensor technology and uses its now proven Dual Pixel CMOS AF, which has impressed in the past, partnered with its latest DIGIC 7 image processor.

In a first for Canon's mirrorless range, the EOS M5 incorporates a built-in electronic viewfinder with a 2.36-million dot resolution and fast 120fps refresh rate. There’s also a large 3.2-inch tilt-angle display – and what’s really nice to see here is that Canon has implemented touchscreen technology, just as it’s done with the 5D Mark IV.

The screen can be tilted upwards by approximately 85 degrees for waist-level shooting, and downwards by up to 180 degrees should you be ever tempted to take a selfie with your M5. It features the same impressive 1,620,000-dot resolution as we've seen on both the 5D Mark IV and 1D X Mark II.

The EOS M5 is also the most connected Canon camera we've yet seen, with not only Wi-Fi and NFC, but Bluetooth. This allows a low-power, constant connection to be maintained between camera and smart device for what promises to be easy transfer of images between the two.

Perhaps a little surprisingly, given the recent arrival of 4K video on the 5D Mark IV and the increasing prevalence of 4K on rival cameras, the EOS M5 sticks with 1080p video, although it's possible to shoot at up to 60p.

While manufacturers like Fuji, Olympus and Panasonic have steadily built up their lens ranges over the past few years to cover a range of focal lengths, with a decent mix of primes and zooms to suit a range of budgets, Canon’s EF-M lens range currently stands at a paltry seven.

Of these, five are fairly slow variable-aperture zoom lenses, while the other two are primes, the fastest of which is the 22mm f/2 – no nice f/1.4 optics here. Yes, there is the EF-EOS M adapter available, enabling you to use Canon’s huge back catalogue of EF-mount lenses, but putting often chunky lenses on a small body feels a little perverse when the whole point of the M5 is acting as a smaller, more pocketable alternative to an EOS DSLR system.

It’s hard to say whether Canon is waiting to see if the EOS M5 is a success before developing more lenses for it, but having such a limited range of dedicated lenses compared to rivals may be one of the key things that holds back the M5.

Build and handling

Polycarbonate construction

Dial function button

427g

Rather than the compact-style look that previous EOS M series CSCs have followed, the EOS M5 looks like a mini DSLR, thanks in part to its built-in EVF sitting relatively central above the lens – there’s also a small built-in flash tucked away in the raised hump of the camera. It’s certainly very petite, but not so small that it’s an issue when you pick it up.

Taking its styling cues from both the EOS DSLR and mirrorless ranges, the subtle two-tone finish of the EOS M5 gives the camera a premium look, with the metallic grey matching that of the lenses in the EF-M range.

Despite appearances though, the chassis is constructed from strong polycarbonate and not aluminium alloy, and weighs in at 427g body-only with battery and card. In the hand, while there’s no getting away from the noticeable plasticky feel, especially when you tap the top plate, the modest grip is nice and comfy, with Canon's pleasing textured rubber coating enhancing the feel.

The EOS M5 is the most enthusiast-focused mirrorless camera we’ve seen from Canon to date, with numerous body-mounted controls. As we've seen on other EOS mirrorless cameras the shutter button is ringed by a front command dial, while there's an exposure compensation dial at the rear (similar to that seen on the likes of the Fuji X-T2).

Taking inspiration, though, from Canon’s range of G-series enthusiast compacts is the addition of a Dial Func. button, which is effectively a command dial with an additional button in the centre.

Whereas Canon DSLRs with top-plate LCDs have four buttons dotted along the top for access to ISO, WB etc, on the M5 you simply have to press this central button, which will then allow you to toggle through the settings (White Balance, ISO, Metering mode, AF mode and Drive mode), and select one by pressing the button again.

The setting you've selected is displayed either in the viewfinder or on the rear screen, and you then use the command dial to adjust the desired setting. In practice, it’s a system we have to say works very well, delivering a refined way of quickly accessing and adjusting a range of key settings.

As well as a rear scroll wheel control with four-way controls, there’s a decent degree of customisation available, and that’s not forgetting the touchscreen interface, which makes selecting desired settings and reviewing images that much more straightforward, while there are some clever tricks that allow for quick AF selection.

Autofocus

49-point AF system

Phase-detection points built onto sensor

One-shot AF and Servo AF

As we’ve mentioned, Canon’s original EOS M got quite a kicking for its sluggish AF performance. There was no issue with its accuracy; the problem was with the time it took to lock onto subjects, and it wasn’t anywhere near as snappy as its rivals. Things have improved since then with the M3 and M10, and the M5 things takes things up a sizeable notch.

The camera uses Canon’s latest Dual Pixel CMOS AF system, in which all the pixels on the surface of the sensor are made up of two separate photodiodes, which are read separately for phase-detection AF, and together for imaging.

We’ve been impressed with this system in the likes of the EOS 80D and 5D Mark IV, and it doesn’t disappoint in the EOS M5. Compared to the original EOS M, AF performance is almost unrecognizable.

Focusing is nice and quick, while the ability to touch and drag the AF point with your thumb on the rear display while you have the camera raised to your eye makes quick AF area selection very straightforward. You don't have to swipe across the whole screen either – if you want you can set this function to half or a quarter of the display in the menu.

Coverage is pretty good too, with 80% of the image area covered and 49 AF points at your disposal (on a grid of 7 x 7), while face and subject tracking can also be specified.

Performance

7fps burst shooting with AF

295-shot battery life

Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity

With some help from the new DIGIC 7 image processor the EOS M5 is capable of shooting at a burst rate of 7fps, with full AF functionality and metering, and it can sustain this for up to (approximately) 31 JPEG files, before dropping in speed to 4fps, continuing at this rate until the card is full. Should you want to shoot faster than this, 9fps is possible, but focusing and metering will be locked once the shutter has been fired; this rate can be sustained for 26 JPEGs.

The EOS M5’s metering system offers the choice of evaluative, partial, centre-weighted and spot metering modes, with the default evaluative option working well (as with the shot above), although it’s worth remembering that this is hooked up to the chosen AF point, so in some scenes you might need to dial in some exposure compensation.

The EVF is very good – it has a decent 120fps refresh rate, and while the 0.62x magnification isn’t the biggest out there the view doesn’t feel cramped when you raise your eye up to it, and it compares favourably with rivals like the Fujifilm X-T10 and Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark II.

The rear LCD's touchscreen interface is excellent, tying in seamlessly with the M5’s body-mounted controls to offer quick access to pretty much any core setting you want – tap the Quick Menu button and you can select and adjust every key setting.

Swiping to scroll through images is a breeze, while the pinch-to-zoom feature makes it easy to quickly assess image sharpness, and, as we’ve mentioned, tapping to adjust the AF point works a treat.

The 295-shot battery life lags a little behind the likes of the X-T10’s 350 – an extra battery is something we’d certainly recommend – while the combination of Wi-Fi, NFC and Bluetooth connectivity makes it pretty hassle-free to transfer images from the M5 to your smart device.

Image quality

ISO100-25,600

Built-in low-pass filter

+/-3 EV exposure compensation in 1/3 or 1/2-stop increments

While there's been a recent trend of doing away with an optical low-pass filter on sensors in an effort to squeeze out even more detail, Canon has kept the filter on the M5's chip, and the 24MP sensor still delivers bags of detail, especially at low ISOs - see image below. Detail does drop off when you take the sensitivity beyond ISO6,400, but this is to be expected.

This not only provides the potential for producing decent-quality A3+ prints – the flexibility offered by the densely populated sensor means you can crop images pretty aggressively if required.

The EOS M5 handles noise well, which isn't surprising given that, as we've mentioned, its sensor has much in common with the 80D's, which was excellent in this respect.

Noise between ISO100-400 is virtually non-existent, with the M5 delivering lovely, clean images, while things still look pretty good above those settings. Luminance (grain-like) noise only really starts to make a noticeable appearance at ISO1600, while color noise also starts to encroach at ISO3200.

Detail also begins to suffer beyond this point, but results are more than acceptable at ISO6400 (see image above), while at the upper limit of ISO25,600 images do show a smudgy loss of detail, but are still useable.

Verdict

There's much to like about Canon's little EOS M5. The 24MP APS-C sensor delivers images with bags of detail, while the polished handling, including a well thought-out control layout that's brilliantly integrated with the touchscreen interface, makes it a nice camera to shoot with.

The EVF works well too, while the AF is much improved thanks to the inclusion of Dual Pixel CMOS AF – AF point selection using an area of the touchscreen is a joy.

Some may feel the absence of 4K video is an oversight, given that many rivals now include this as a standard setting, while the relatively small selection of EF-M lenses could prove limiting. Granted, you've got Canon's huge range of EF and EF-S lenses available via an adapter, but with the likes of Micro Four Thirds and Fuji offering a growing selection of dedicated lenses the fairly entry-level range of EF-M lenses looks weak by comparison, and out of keeping with the high-end credentials of the EOS M5.

Also, for a camera at this price point, a few more bits of metal in the construction wouldn't have gone amiss. But perhaps the biggest sticking point is the M5's price tag. While it does a lot of things very well, so do its rivals – and for a much more attractive price.

Unless you're a die-hard EOS user with a stack of lenses that you want to use on a smaller body, then, until the M5's price drops a touch, there are better options out there.

Competition

]]>Canon EOS M6http://www.techradar.com/reviews/canon-eos-m6
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/canon-eos-m6With a lightweight, compact body and features inherited from the flagship EOS M5, what’s not to like?Fri, 24 Nov 2017 18:54:15 +0000techradar.comThe successor to 2015’s EOS M3, Canon’s EOS M6 arrives with a handful of features inherited from its relatively new big brother, the flagship EOS M5. The two share similar intentions and are aimed towards a similar kind of user, but with a slightly pared-down feature set, the EOS M6 arrives with a more appealing price tag.

Canon may have got off to a slow start with its mirrorless line, but it's made up for this in recent years. It now has four models in its EOS M portfolio, covering the full spectrum from beginner to enthusiast. This model in particular appears to be well suited to anyone who cut their teeth on the original EOS M or EOS M10.

That said, it’s launched into a very competitive market. Price-wise it not only goes up against a slew of well-regarded models from other manufacturers, but also older, more advanced cameras whose age has allowed them to fall to temptingly low prices.

Features

Like the EOS M5, the EOS M6 has been furnished with a 24.2MP sensor designed with Canon’s Dual Pixel CMOS AF technology.

This allows the camera to perform full-time phase-detect AF to help keep focusing fast, as well as nice and smooth when recording video, and is one of the main changes from the older 24.2MP sensor inside the EOS M3, which offered Canon’s alternative Hybrid CMOS AF III system.

The sensor works with Canon’s DIGIC 7 processing engine, which is said to provide better subject detection and tracking over the previous DIGIC 6 engine. Another thing it allows is 9fps burst shooting, which drops to 7fps with continuous autofocus enabled, and the camera joins many other recent EOS models in allowing raw files to be processed in camera post-capture.

The EOS M6’s LCD screen is competitively specced, measuring three inches in size and bearing 1.04 million dots. It’s touch-sensitive and tilts downwards over a 45-degree angle, although you can also pull it right round to face the front. Unlike the flagship EOS M5, the EOS M6 doesn't incorporate an electronic viewfinder, although you can use one of two external models – either the tilting EVF-DC1 or the newer, fixed EVF-DC2 – by slipping them into the hot shoe.

While a number of rivals are offering 4K video recording at this level, Canon has opted for Full HD video at frame rates up to 60p instead. This may disappoint some, although the presence of Canon's Dual Pixel CMOS AF system and a touchscreen that can be used to adjust focus during recording, together with the further option of using an external microphone, mean it’s still worth considering if video is your thing.

If there’s one area where the EOS M6 shines it’s connectivity options

The fact that you can flip the LCD all the way around to face the front also means this camera is likely to appeal to vloggers, while the inclusion of five-axis digital image stabilization when recording video should help keep things a little steadier if you tend to shoot footage while moving around.

Image stabilization for stills is not provided through the body, but via compatible lenses equipped with their own stabilization systems. If, however, such a lens is used when recording video, the two systems combine to provide a Combination IS system.

If there’s one area where the EOS M6 shines it’s connectivity options. Wi-Fi, NFC and Bluetooth are all present, with the latter meaning you can keep the camera hooked up to your smartphone at all times.

Canon claims you can get around 295 frames per charge from the EOS M, regardless of whether you’re using the LCD screen or a separate viewfinder. You can, however, boost this figure to around 425 frames by enabling the Eco mode in the menu system – when you do so the camera's screen will darken and turn off more quickly than normal when the camera isn't being used.

Everything is recorded to SD, SDHC or SDXC media, with support for the UHS-I standard.

Build and handling

Five separate physical dials

Integrated flash and hot shoe

Weighs 390g

In terms of the Canon EOS M6's design, there have been no great departures from the EOS M3 – and that’s no bad thing. With a sculpted grip and a range of buttons that can be extensively customized, there’s a great deal to love.

There’s been some reshuffling of controls, although the only difference of any significance is the addition of a further dial on the top plate. This now means the top plate offers two command dials, together with mode and exposure compensation dials, which is in addition to a further control dial on the back of the camera.

This brings to total number of dials to five, which is excellent for those who prefer to access things manually rather than via menus and touchscreens – though you’ll no doubt opt for touchscreen operation at many points when you see how extensively this can be used to operate the camera.

Thanks to the design of the grip the M6 generally feels good in the hands, although those with larger hands may find it a little cramped, and prefer a model with a grip more akin to that found on a DSLR. The eyelet for the camera strap also interferes with holding the camera comfortably, but if you tend to keep your camera hanging from your neck you won't mind this.

Unlike some of its rivals, the M6 appears to use polycarbonate for its top and bottom plates

The Canon EOS M6 weighs just 520g with its memory card, battery and EF-M 15-45mm f/3.5-6.3 IS STM kit lens in place, and, thanks to the collapsible construction of the lens, it’s more compact than the average compact system camera at this level.

While the focal range of the kit lens in 35mm terms equates to 24-72mm – that wide–angle figure being very compared to some other kit lenses – the fact that the lens only offers a maximum aperture of f/6.3 at its telephoto end is somewhat disappointing.

Unlike some of its rivals, the M6 appears to use polycarbonate for its top and bottom plates, although the four dials on the top plate are made of metal, and the bulk of the body is finished with a smart rubber that feels as good as it looks. It’s a shame not to see more robust magnesium-alloy paneling, but attention to detail is still strong and no corners have been cut.

Autofocus

49-point AF system

Dual Pixel CMOS AF

Focus peaking with color and peaking level control

The camera’s sensor uses 49 areas to autofocus as standard, although you can also manually shift a point around all but the peripheries of the frame. You can also use the touchscreen to tap the subject on which you want the camera to focus, and employ the Smooth zone AF option to keep track of erratically moving subjects within a small portion of the frame.

Focusing speed is generally very good, though not quite as snappy as some rivals

Autofocus performance is generally sound. In good light the Canon EOS M6 is able to bring subjects to focus in good time; perhaps not quite as rapidly as some rivals, but certainly fast enough for static subjects. With its EF-M 15-45mm f/3.5-6.3 IS STM and EF-M 18-150mm f/3.5-6.3 IS STM lenses, it does this practically silently too.

Thanks to its Dual Pixel CMOS AF system, the M6 is generally very capable of keeping track of a moving subject when set to focus continuously, although as with any such system, the extent to which it manages this is heavily dependent on what you're trying to track. For example, a runner wearing clothing that contrasted well with their background proved to be no issue for the system, but it wasn't quite as reliable when focused on a dog among grass that was only occupying a small portion of the frame.

When using manual focus you can call upon focus peaking, with red, yellow and blue colours on offer, together with high and low peaking levels to choose from. The peaking outline isn’t quite as thick as on some other models, although this is arguably a good thing as it obscures less of the subject’s details, thus helping with accuracy.

Performance

7fps burst shooting

295-shot battery life

Wi-Fi, NFC and Bluetooth

There’s only the briefest of delays after you flick the power switch, and if you already have an AF point selected the Canon EOS M6 generally finds focus very quickly. If you tend to leave the camera’s autofocus system on its more automated default option it may take a whisker longer to identify the scene, but it’s certainly still speedy enough for all but the most critical situations.

With a fast memory card the camera manages 18 simultaneous raw+JPEG frames before slowing down, and 28 JPEGs when tested in the same way – perfectly respectable figures for such a model. It takes around six seconds to clear the former and less than two for the latter, and while the camera locks up as this happens – which means you can't enter the menus – this is potentially only an issue in practice if you're using a slower card, which would lengthen these times.

You're able to browse the menus and captured images without any lagging, and even when zooming into images there’s virtually no lag as you use gestures to zoom and swipe around, while if you make use of the freely rotating rear control dial you can zip through a series of images at great speed.

Thanks to the combination of physical controls, the touchscreen and the camera’s general responsiveness, once you get used to the layout of controls and functions you can operate the EOS M6 very fluidly. The fact that you can customize so many of the camera’s controls, and place so much within a custom My Menu, only makes it better.

The tilt-angle touchscreen allows you to shoot from a range of angles

The EOS M6's LCD screen responds very well to touch, and while some of the virtual controls are on the small side, you’re unlikely to want to control everything via the screen (the main menu, for example). Should you find the screen isn't bright enough outdoors you can easily boost its brightness through the menus, although one strange issue is that the top plate renders some of the screen’s touch controls inaccessible when the screen is flipped through a 180-degree angle.

Another oddity is the lack of a selectable electronic shutter, a feature that’s pretty much standard on such models. Its absence means you can't shoot as discreetly as you can on rival models, as there’s essential no way to silence the M6's mechanical shutter (which is a shame, given the quiet AF performance from the two aforementioned lenses). This also means you can't access shutter speeds faster than the 1/4000 sec limit imposed by the mechanical shutter, although this is arguably less of a concern here, when you consider the lack of wide-aperture lenses in the current EOS M portfolio.

Image quality

Four metering patterns

In-camera raw processing

5-axis IS during video recording

The Canon EOS M6 offers evaluative, centre-weighted, partial and spot metering options, and left to the default first of those settings it manages to cope well across both balanced and tricky lighting conditions. It’s a good idea to keep the Peripheral Illumination correction option enabled, as this helps to lift the slight darkness that can form around the peripheries of the frame, and the Auto Lighting Optmizer also proves useful in high-contrast situations.

The EOS M6's evaluative metering does a very solid job

The default Picture Style is Standard, although a comparison with the Auto Picture Style shows the latter to do a much better job of reproducing most colors. Greens and blues in particular appear somewhat undersaturated on the Standard option, so Auto is perhaps a better choice if you’re shooting outdoors, particularly if the scene contains skies and foliage.

The EOS M6's Auto Picture Style does a better job of producing greens and blues than the Standard setting

The auto white balance system appears to be nice and accurate under both natural and artificial sources, and even when these are mixed, although it can remove some of the warmth of incandescent sources. Many recent cameras feature an option that allows the user to keep white balance on Auto while preserving this warmth, but it's not present here. Still, there is enough control through the various options to allow for all the tweaking you need.

The camera's Auto White Balance does a sound job in both natural and artificial light

One of the strengths of the Canon EOS M6 is just how much you can do with images post capture. In-camera raw processing allows you to edit files and save them as new JPEGs, and while it would be good to see this functionality fleshed out and expanded, the fact that you can control everything through the touchscreen makes the process very quick and easy. On top of this, options to resize images, adjust their aspect ratio and crop finely means you can achieve a fair bit without needing to go anywhere near a computer.

While the M6’s video capabilities fall short of delivering the same kind of detail and clarity as some rivals, it records perfectly decent Full HD video. The ability to use the touchscreen to shift focus between different parts of the scene is particularly useful, with the Dual Pixel CMOS AF system moving smoothly and discreetly as you do this.

Verdict

In isolation, the Canon EOS M6 has plenty going for it. It’s small and light, responsive in use and blessed with a focusing system that’s very capable across both stills and video capture.

Image quality is decent straight out of the box, and once you acquaint yourself with the camera’s behaviour you can improve on this. There’s also plenty of physical control on offer, and plenty of ways in which you can customize the controls to better serve your shooting, while the many post-capture options that are available help you output your images easily and quickly.

Still, it’s difficult to identify exactly what it the M6 offers that places it ahead of its very capable rivals.

With no 4K video, no viewfinder, no electronic shutter and a build quality that falls short of what's offered elsewhere at this price point, the M6 has a hard time justifying its asking price – and when you add in the separate viewfinder, this comes to a figure not far off the cost of the viewfinder-equipped EOS M5, which makes you wonder why you’d want to opt for the separate combination when you can just get everything in one.

Announced at the same time was the EOS Rebel T6s (EOS 760D), which is virtually identical under the skin to the Rebel T6i, but with a few more features designed to tempt slightly more experienced users.

Features

APS-C CMOS sensor, 24MP

3.0-inch, vari-angle touchscreen, 1,040,000 dots

1080p video capture

Despite the step up from the 18 million pixels in the Rebel T5i / 700D, the Rebel T6i keeps the older sensor's native sensitivity range of ISO100-12,800. There's also an expansion setting of ISO25,600 for very low light conditions. In movie shooting the maximum native setting is ISO6400 and there's an expansion value of ISO12,800.

In a first for Canon DSLRs, the Rebel T6i features both Wi-Fi and NFC (Near Field Communication) technology to enable it to be connected to a smartphone or tablet for remote control and image sharing. It's even possible to connect two cameras just by touching the NFC logos together, and then transfer images wirelessly.

Like the older Rebel T5i, the Rebel T6i has a 3.0-inch 1,040,000-dot Clear View II TFT screen that's touch-sensitive. It also has an aspect ratio of 3:2 to match the uncropped ratio of the imaging sensor, while the vari-angle hinge on the side of the body means it can be placed in a range of positions.

There's a 19-point phase-detect AF system when shooting through the viewfinder. The choice of AF point can be left to the camera to decide in 19-point AF mode, or it can be set manually in Single point AF or Zone AF mode. In Zone AF mode you have the choice of five groups of points for selection, whereas in Single point mode all 19 points are available for individual selection.

Canon's Hybrid CMOS AF III system (with Face detection, Tracking AF, FlexiZone-Multi and FlexiZone-Single modes) is available with the Rebel T6i / 750D when using Live View. This is an improved version of the Hybrid CMOS AF II system found in the Canon EOS SL1 / 100D, having a greater number of focusing pixels arranged in a more regular array than in the past. Canon says it's about 4x faster than version II and two generations ahead of the original Hybrid CMOS AF system in the Rebel T5i.

Unlike the Rebel T6s / 760D, the Rebel T6i / 750D doesn't have a Servo autofocus option in Live View mode so there isn't an option for focus to adjust continuously while the shutter release is held down and subject distance changes. There is, however, a Continuous AF option in the Live View section of the main menu. When this is activated focus is adjusted fairly slowly when the shutter release isn't pressed. It's designed for use in video mode and to pre-focus when shooting stills.

Textured coatings on the deep grip on the front and the small thumb bridge on the back help to make the camera feel comfortable and safe in your grasp.

Following the design of other Canon DSLRs, the Rebel T6i / 750D has a Quick menu that is accessed by pressing the Q button. This gives a quick route to some key features for adjustment. Setting adjustments can be made using the physical buttons and dials or by touching the screen. If you're not used to using a touch-screen camera you may find that you start out using the buttons and dials, but gradually you start using the touchscreen because it's so intuitive.

Being a DSLR, the Rebel T6i / 750D has an optical viewfinder. Canon has used a pentamirror design rather than the pentaprism versions found in more expensive cameras like the EOS 70D. This shows approximately 95% of the scene (the 70D's covers 98%) so you may need to take care with composition to avoid including unseen elements around the edges of the frame.

As the screen is on an articulating joint it can be seen from a wide range of angles. Reflections are an issue in very bright light, but it is usually possible to see enough detail to compose images. In Live View mode it's especially helpful to use the screen to set the AF point, or even set the AF point and trip the shutter when composing images at very awkward angles.

Perhaps the biggest handling difference between the T6i and T6s is that the T6s has a Quick Control dial around the navigation buttons. The T6i relies on an exposure compensation button instead. In manual exposure mode this button needs to be pressed while rotating the dial near the shutter release to set aperture, in the semi automatic modes it's used with the dial to adjust exposure compensation. It's a quick and easy task, but the Quick Control dial on the T6s / 760D makes these adjustments a little faster.

The exposure mode is set using the dedicated dial on the right of the T6i's top-plate – this is on the left on the T6s. Unlike the T6s there's no lock on the dial, but it doesn't get knocked out of position easily and it provides a route to the same same exposure modes including program, shutter priority, aperture priority and manual as well as options such as Full Automatic (Scene Intelligent Auto), Creative Auto (which allows you to take control with simple instructions using non-photographic terms) and a collection of user-selectable scene modes, including some within Special Scene (SCN) mode.

Autofocus

19-point AF, all cross-type AF points

Predictive AF

AF working range down to -0.5EV

Pressing the AF Area selection button once allows the navigation buttons to be used to set the desired AF point. Pressing it multiple times toggles through the AF-point selection modes (Single-point AF, Zone AF and 19-Point automatic selection AF). There's also an AF point selection button to the right of the thumb rest on the back of the camera, but this doesn't allow you to toggle through the selection modes. It would be nice to be able to set the AF point on the screen while composing images in the viewfinder as you can with some Panasonic cameras and the Nikon D5500.

The phase detection AF system that's available when composing images in the viewfinder is fast and accurate, even in quite low light with the kit lens mounted. It means it's a much better choice when shooting sport or action. In 19-point mode it does a pretty good job of identifying the subject, but Zone-AF and Single-point mode are a better choice provided you can keep the active area over the right part of the scene.

When using Live View mode I found the T6i / 750D is capable of getting subjects sharp quickly, so it's possible to compose images on the main screen when hand-holding the camera. However, it's not really fast enough to use it to shoot moving subjects, and there's no servo option, so it can't adjust focus as subject distance changes when your finger is on the shutter release.

Performance

5fps burst shooting

Exposure weighted towards active AF point

440 shot battery life

The Rebel T6i / 750D can also shoot continuously at up to 5fps. This may not seem fantastic by current standards, but it's still very useful when shooting sport. Plus, the burst depth has been increased from the 30 JPEG or 6 raw files of the Rebel T5i / 700D to a whopping 940 Large/Fine JPEGs or 8 raw files.

A dedicated 7,560-pixel RGB and Infra Red (IR) sensor is provided for measuring exposure when the viewfinder is in use. As with the T5i's iFCL metering system, these pixels are grouped into 63 segments (9x7) with the usual options of Evaluative, Centre-weighted, Partial and Spot metering. However, the partial (6.0% of viewfinder) and Spot (3.5% of viewfinder) coverage is a little more precise than in the T5i / 700D (9% and 4% respectively) and pixels on the sensor each have their own RGB-IR filter and are read independently.

This is a similar system to the one in the excellent EOS 7D Mark II and Canon claims it's more accurate than the T5i's with improved colour detection. However, it's worth remembering that even in Evaluative mode the metering is linked to the AF points, so the brightness of the subject could have an impact upon overall exposure.

Image quality

ISO100-12,800, expandable to 100-25,600

Huge jump in image quality from the T5i / 700D

Pleasing skin tones

The level of detail in images is a huge leap up from that from the T5i / 700D, but noise levels are about the same despite the extra 6 million pixels on the sensor.

Viewed at 100% on-screen, the T6i / 750D's high sensitivity JPEGs look softer than simultaneously captured raw files, but even at ISO12,800 some look good at around A3 size (16 x 12 inches).

As usual, when all noise reduction is turned off the raw files have more visible noise at 100%, but it's fine grained and there's no banding, so it's possible to produce images that have a bit more 'bite' than the JPEGs.

Chroma noise only really becomes obvious at 100% in raw files captured at ISO1600 and above (when all noise reduction is turned off). Meanwhile the softening of detail that tends to go hand-in-hand with noise reduction in the default settings becomes apparent at 100% in JPEGs captured at ISO3200, though it's not really an issue until ISO12,800.

Verdict

The Rebel T6i / 750D can trace its heritage back to the early days of digital photography and it shows. A very polished and well-thought out camera, the Rebel T6i / 750D is a great introduction to DSLR photography for those looking to make the step up from a compact or smartphone.

Very comfortable to hold and use, the controls are within easy reach and the touchscreen is very well implemented, allowing you to navigate the menus and make setting selections with you a few taps. It's also very handy to be able to pinch-zoom into images to check sharpness.

We particularly liked having a vari-angle screen because it makes it easy to compose images at awkward angles and encourages you to be creative. It's also helpful to be able to set the AF point and/or trip the shutter with a tap on the screen.

The upgrade to the 24MP sensor is a very welcome improvement over the 18MP chip found in the Rebel T5i / 700D, which combined with excellent phase detection autofocus and metering systems, adds up to a very nice camera.

Competition

]]>Nikon D5600http://www.techradar.com/reviews/nikon-d5600
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/nikon-d5600The D5600 is Nikon's latest mid-range DSLR designed for both beginners and more experienced users.Fri, 24 Nov 2017 18:19:00 +0000techradar.comNikon’s entry-level DSLRs can be split into two groups: the D3xxx series, epitomised by the excellent D3300, offering a very affordable way into DSLR photography; and the D5xxx range of DSLRs designed for those looking for a few more features and greater creative control.

The D5600 is the latest camera in this latter series, replacing the 18-month-old D5500, which is now getting hard to track down.

As we saw with the recent D3400 upgrade to the D3300, rather than usher in a host of sweeping changes Nikon has opted for a more modest update, with the most notable new feature being the inclusion of Nikon’s SnapBridge technology, which facilitates easy and automatic transfer of images directly from camera to smart device.

Features

APS-C CMOS sensor, 24.2MP

3.2-inch, vari-angle touchscreen, 1,037,000 dots

1080p video capture

As far as features go, the specs for the D5600 are pretty much identical to those of the D5500. Resolution remains the same at a decent 24.2MP, with the APS-C-sized CMOS sensor again shunning an optical low pass filter in the quest to pull out even more detail from the data recorded.

The D5600 also uses the same EXPEED 4 image processor, with a native sensitivity range running from ISO100 to 25,600 meaning it should be quite comfortable shooting in a range of lighting conditions.

The optical viewfinder provides coverage of 95% of the frame (pretty standard on a entry-level DSLR), so for some key shots you may want to double-check the composition on the rear display to ensure that nothing unwanted has crept into the extreme edges of the frame.

Speaking of the display, there’s the same 3.2-inch vari-angle touchscreen display with a 1,037,000-dot resolution, although its operation has been improved. It now offers the frame-advance bar we’ve seen on both the D5 and D500 to speed up toggling through images, as well as a crop function for use during playback.

As far as features go, the specs for the D5600 are pretty much identical to those of the D5500

Another addition to the D5600 over the D5500 is Nikon’s timelapse movie function, as featured on models higher up the Nikon range. This allows for timelapse movies to be captured and put together entirely in-camera, with an exposure smoothing function helping to even-out variations in lighting as your sequence is captured.

While other manufacturers are starting to offer 4K video capture as standard, Nikon has, a little bit disappointingly, decided to stick with 1080p capture here, with a choice of 60p, 50p, 30p, 25p and 24p frame rates. The D5600 features a small stereo microphone positioned just in front of the hotshoe; if you want to use a dedicated microphone, there’s a 2.5mm port on the side of the camera.

As we’ve touched on, the most pronounced difference between the D5500 and D5600 is the inclusion of Nikon’s SnapBridge connectivity. While the D5500 featured Wi-Fi and NFC for image transfer, SnapBridge creates a constant connection between the camera and your smart device, once you’ve downloaded the free SnapBridge app and the initial setup’s been completed.

Using a low-energy Bluetooth connection, batches of images – or rather 2MP JPEG versions to be precise – can be automatically transferred from the D5600 to your device, or you can select individual images to transfer at full size, though again this is JPEG-only.

To make the most of the camera's 24MP sensor, you'll want to think about investing in extra lenses down the line

SnapBridge can also be used to transfer movies wirelessly, and for the remote capture of still images – in these cases Wi-Fi is used rather than Bluetooth.

The D5600 can be purchased body-only, but will more than likely be bought with the bundled AF-P DX 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR lens (there’s a non-VR version as well, but for a few dollars or pounds more it’s definitely worth the extra outlay for a lens with anti-shake technology).

The lens is nice and compact, as well as offering Nikon's new silent AF and up to four stops of image stabilisation. It's more than up to the job of getting you started, and fine for general photography, although to make the most of the camera's 24MP sensor, you'll want to think about investing in extra lenses down the line.

Build and handling

Nikon has used a monocoque construction for the D5600, as seen in both the D5300 and D5500, with the shell of the camera forged from a single piece of material – in this case, a strong polycarbonate.

This has enabled Nikon to reduce the number of parts used and keep the weight down – the D5600 tips the scales at 420g, body-only) exactly the same as the D5500. And it's not only the weight that's the same, as the body appears to be pretty much identical to its predecessor – even the dimensions are the same, at 124 x 97 x 70mm.

If it wasn’t for the need for a reflex mirror, the depth of the D5600 would surely put some mirrorless rivals in the shade

This means the body retains its narrow portion between the lens mount and grip – if it wasn’t for the need for a reflex mirror, the depth of the D5600 would surely put some mirrorless rivals in the shade. The D5600 also keeps the well-proportioned handgrip, which makes the camera fit nicely in the hand and provides a very comfy grip.

The top of the D5600 isn’t overly cluttered with buttons, with a mode dial on the top of the camera that features the switch to activate Live View around its collar – it's quick and easy to flick on and off whenever you need to use the rear screen to shoot.

Next to this is the fully-exposed command dial (pretty much every other Nikon DSLR barring the D5500 has only a small portion exposed from the body) that allows you to make adjustments to the aperture/shutter speed depending on the shooting mode you’re using, while the exposure compensation button just in front makes it easy to quickly fine-tune the exposure. If you’re shooting in full manual mode, you can hold down the exposure comp button to adjust aperture with the command dial.

Round the back of the D5600 the streamlined control theme continues. There’s a multi-directional D-pad for navigating the camera’s menus and settings, which also doubles as an AF point selector, while hitting the ‘I’ button brings up a range of core settings on the rear display.

You can navigate these options using the D-pad, hitting the OK button at the centre of pad to select the setting you want to change before toggling through the settings for that setting. This process could perhaps be refined by allowing you to simply navigate to the desired feature with the D-pad before using the command dial to flick through to the required setting.

The D5600 isn't overly-reliant on the rear screen if you prefer more tactile controls

That said, you can of course make use of the D5600's touchscreen functionality to change settings – you simply tap the ‘I’ icon on the display, then tap through to the required setting and adjust it with another tap of the screen.

The D5600 isn't overly-reliant on the rear screen if you prefer more tactile controls. There’s a programmable function button on the front of the camera that your left thumb can easily press when your left hand is cupping the lens, which when used in conjunction with the command dial can be used to quickly set ISO as the default option, although other functions can be assigned to the button if you prefer.

There’s also a dedicated drive mode button just under the lens release which can toggle between the camera’s single and continuous shooting modes, as well as the self-timer.

Autofocus

39-point AF, nine cross-type AF points

39 or 11 AF points can be selected

3D-tracking AF

The D5600 sticks with Nikon’s proven 39-point Multi-CAM 4800DX AF system. It may be starting to show its age against mirrorless rivals offering ever-more AF points, but it’s still a very solid and accurate system when shooting with the viewfinder.

Both single and continuous AF modes are fast and accurate, locking on with ease to static subjects, while the AF tracking modes on offer work well for moving subjects, although you don’t get the more advanced custom settings found higher up the Nikon range.

The D5600's AF system is fast and accurate

We did find that the bundled 18-55mm kit lens struggled a little when light levels dropped; this issue isn't unique to the D5600, but put some better (and faster) glass on the front – even the dirt-cheap 35mm f/1.8G DX prime – and you’ll be rewarded with snappier autofocus.

As we’ve found on the D5500, the D5600’s large vari-angle touchscreen display encourages the use of Live View, but is left a little wanting when it comes to AF performance. With well-lit subjects the D5600 delivers accurate and quiet (if slightly sedate) focusing, especially compared to mirrorless cameras, but in darker conditions there can be a fair bit of hunting as the AF struggles to acquire focus, and you’ll soon find yourself flicking the Live View switch so that you can shoot with the viewfinder.

Performance

5fps burst shooting

820-shot battery life

SnapBridge needs work

The D5600’s Matrix metering system copes well with a range of lighting situations, although you might need to dial in some negative exposure compensation in high-contrast scenes to retain highlight detail, and recover shadow detail in post-processing if necessary.

Alternatively, the D5600’s Active D-Lighting system can be useful in such situations, retaining more detail in both the highlights and shadows when shooting JPEG files.

The D5600’s auto white balance system performed well in a range of lighting conditions, rendering natural-looking results, although under some artificial lighting images can look at touch yellowish, so you may want to opt for one of the dedicated white balance presets.

The burst shooting speed of 5fps hasn’t increased over the D5500, and while it’s a solid number, some mirrorless cameras of comparable price and spec are offering considerably more speed in this area, so if action’s your thing this may give you pause for thought.

What a mirrorless camera will struggle to keep up with, however, is the D5600’s battery life

What a mirrorless camera will struggle to keep up with, however, is the D5600’s battery life. Good for 820 shots, it towers over most mirrorless options, with potential rivals like the Panasonic Lumix G80/G85 capable of just 330 shots before you’ll need to recharge or swap batteries.

SnapBridge on the D5600 still needs refining – we had issues partnering the camera with our iPhone at first, and it still feels a bit clunky in use. We love the idea, but it needs improving on.

Image quality

ISO100-25,600

Creative Effect modes

No low-pass filter

With the same sensor as the D5500 (and pretty much the same one as the D5300), the results from the 24.2MP chip didn’t throw up any nasty surprises.
As you’d expect, with all of those pixels packed onto the sensor, resolution is very good, with the absence of a low-pass filter allowing for intricate details to be recorded (for the best results, though, you’ll need something better than the 18-55mm kit lens), while there’s plenty of scope for decent enlargements too.

The D5600’s auto white balance system performed well in a range of lighting conditions

Images captured at lower sensitivities appear to be very clean, with little or no noise present. At ISO800 there’s a hint of luminance noise starting to appear in shadow areas, but this doesn’t have a detrimental impact on images, and it’s only at ISO6400 and above that the D5600’s processing starts to really encroach on image quality.

It’s at ISO6400 that detail begins to suffer, while both luminance and chroma noise become quite pronounced. Beyond that setting, while images remain usable, detail continues to decline, with saturation visibly reduced at the highest sensitivity.

Finally, dynamic range is impressive, with the potential to recover plenty of shadow detail in raw images shot at lower ISOs. This latitude does decrease as you ramp up the camera’s sensitivity, though, with ISO1600 about the limit at which you can expect recovered shadows to stand up to close scrutiny.

Verdict

As an upgrade to the D5500, the D5600 is a touch underwhelming - just like the D3400 update to the D3300, the changes are modest at best, while the SnapBridge technology featured still needs to be refined and become more stable.

Forgetting the D5500 for a moment, and viewed against its rivals, and the D5600 is a very good mid-range DSLR.

While it does feel very much a sum of its parts rather than having one single standout feature that shines through, it's still a well-spec'd DSLR that should satisfy the appetite of both new or more experienced users.

It's a shame that there's not 4K video capture, but the high-resolution 24.2MP sensor produces very detailed images that won't disappoint - you'll have to get a full-frame camera to get better results. The articulating touchscreen adds refinement, while a decent 39-point AF system and polished handling make the D5600 one of the most well-rounded entry-level DSLRs available.

Competition

]]>Sony Alpha A6000http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/digital-slrs-hybrids/sony-alpha-a6000-1223772/review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/digital-slrs-hybrids/sony-alpha-a6000-1223772/reviewSony's A6000 is great for those looking for something like the A7 but can't quite stretch the budget that far.Fri, 24 Nov 2017 17:23:00 +0000techradar.comNew:The Sony A6000 has since been replaced by both the Alpha A6300 and Alpha A6500, but that's meant the price has come down considerably and is a great buy for those looking for a feature-packed mirrorless camera at a decent price.

It's been a few months since Sony took the decision to officially drop the NEX moniker from its E-mount compact system cameras, renaming all of its interchangeable lens cameras with the Alpha brand, regardless of whether it is an A mount or an E mount (those formally known as NEX) camera. This means that some Alpha cameras (such as the A6000) take E mount lenses, while others take A mount lenses.

Since then, the most exciting product to make its debut has been the Sony A7 and the Sony A7R, the company's full-frame E-mount cameras which have been causing waves. Although their prices compare well with other full-frame cameras like the Canon 5D Mark III and Nikon D800, they are still a stretch for many.

So – the solution? Sony has taken the decision to introduce what amounts to an APS-C version of the A7 in the shape of the A6000. As of now, two of the NEX lines will be discontinued – the Sony NEX-7, which was the camera aimed at the semi-pro audience, and the NEX-6, which sat at the top of the enthusiast range.

Features

Sony expects NEX-7 customers will head in the direction of the A7, while NEX-6 customers will be catered for by the new A6000.

The A6000 has a similar look and feel to the A7. It features a newly designed 24.3 million pixel APS-C CMOS sensor. Like the device in the A7, the sensor has a gapless on-chip design, which is supposed to increase light collecting efficiency.

The sensor also has 179 autofocus points, of which all 179 are used for phase detection, but 25 are also contrast detection points for the camera's hybrid autofocusing system.

This autofocusing system facilitates Sony's claim that the camera has the fastest AF in the world, for those cameras with APS-C sized sensors at least anyway – and that claim stretches to DSLRs as well as other compact system cameras. With the A7 it also shares features such as Lock on AF, Eye AF and AF area settings.

The camera is also equipped with Sony's latest processor, the Bionz X, something which is also found in the A7/A7R. Sony claims this to be three times faster than the previous generation.

Along with a faster speed, the Bionz X processor facilitates a maximum sensitivity speed of ISO 25600.

On the back of the camera is a tiltable LCD screen, which is joined by an electronic viewfinder, which is the same 0.39 inch device as found in the recently launched RX10 bridge camera.

The A6000 comes complete with inbuilt Wi-Fi and NFC technology

As well as ditching the NEX name, Sony is ditching the NEX menu system, unifying menus across the entire range of Sony cameras – taking the lead from existing Alphas. This should mean that anybody familiar with any type of Sony camera can easily pick one up from higher (or lower) in the range and be able to get started with it straight away.

As is starting to become pretty much standard, the A6000 comes complete with inbuilt Wi-Fi and NFC technology. Like other recent Sony cameras, it is also customisable with apps which can be downloaded to increase functionality – for instance, a time-lapse app is available.

Battery life for the A6000 is around 310 shots, which doesn't compare very favourably with a lot of DSLRs. The Nikon D3300, for instance, has a battery life of more than double that. Previous Sony cameras we have tested before (such as the A7R) have struggled to last a full day, so it will be interesting to see how the A6000 copes.

As standard, the A6000 comes with a 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 power zoom – the same lens that is packaged with the A5000. You can also buy it body only, with a large range of different E mount lenses now available. As it's a high-end enthusiast camera, perhaps the perfect all-round lens for this camera is the Zeiss 16-70mm f/4 optic, but that comes with a much heftier price tag.

Taking a look at the A6000 there are a lot of similarities between it and the NEX-6 which it sort of replaces.

Those photographers which appreciate a lot of dedicated dials and buttons will probably enjoy using a camera like the A6000 which has plenty of these available.

The grip of the A6000 is ever so slightly more pronounced than on the NEX-6, making it easier to hold, especially when using the camera one-handed. There's also a nice texture to the camera, which helps with getting a good grip on it, as well as lending it an air of quality.

Where the NEX-6 had two stacked dials on top of the camera – one for changing the shooting mode (such as aperture priority, fully automatic or fully manual mode) and another for setting the aperture or shutter speed – depending on the mode you were shooting in, the A6000 has two dials next to each other on the top of the camera. While this takes up more room overall, it makes the experience of shooting easier and less prone to making accidental settings changes. The second dial (shutter speed or aperture) is very easily reachable by the thumb, which is handy for making quick changes.

As with most other Sony cameras of late, most of the buttons on the a6000 are customisable. Sony knows that users like to set for themselves their most commonly used settings, so it's nice to see that brought across here too. There's also a type of quick menu available by pressing the function button – again everything that appears in this menu can be swapped out for something you find you use more often.

A small custom button can be found on the top of the camera, useful if you want quick access to one particular setting often, such as wireless settings.

It's something we keep repeating, but we continue to be baffled by Sony's decision not to include touchscreens on some of its CSCs, especially given it definitely has the technology elsewhere in the portfolio. It seems especially odd not to use one here on the A6000, when the lower specced and cheaper NEX-5R does use one. Including a touchscreen would make it extremely quick and easy to set autofocus points and to navigate through menus, but perhaps the company believes that more experienced photographers are not in favour of touch-sensitive devices.

Setting the autofocus point on this camera is something which would be speedier with a touchscreen, but is not too bad if you set the right custom buttons. To make things quicker, I set the Focus Area to flexible spot. From here, you simply need to press the button in the centre of the scrolling dial on the back of the camera to bring up the focus point selection option. You can then use the directional keys to move around the screen. It's worth noting that this is the default option for the central button when flexible spot is selected - if you've got it set to anything else, it won't work in the same manner.

The menu, having been made uniform to other Sony cameras, is much easier to navigate, with a sensible arrangement into different tabs for camera settings, custom settings, wireless settings, playback settings and other general settings, such as date and time.

While viewing an image in playback, the Fn button becomes a dedicated Wi-Fi button allowing you to share images with your smartphone or tablet. You can either select a single image, all images or multiple images. Once you've set up the Wi-Fi connection with your phone or tablet once, you won't need to enter a password again and it's a reasonably quick process. If you have an NFC enabled device it's quicker still, as all you'll need to do is tap the two devices together to create a connection.

Sony is producing some of the most exciting and consistently well performing cameras on the market. Having been extremely impressed with the A7 and the A7R, I was very keen to find out how, what amounts to an APS-C version of those cameras, performs.

I'm pleased to report that the A6000 is capable of producing some fantastic images. Colours are wonderfully saturated, and although this can occasionally err towards over vibrance, generally, the effect is very pleasing.

If you want to experiment with how colours appear straight from the camera, you can adjust Picture Styles. There are a number of presets, such as Landscape, Vivid, Clear or Monochrome, which can be customised, such as by adjusting the contrast. The good thing about Picture Styles is that they can be shot in raw format, so you'll have a "clean" version of the image should you need it at a later point.

The A6000 renders detail very well. Image smoothing starts to become evident from around ISO 400, but only if you're examining at 100%, and only in some areas of the picture. Generally detail is kept well throughout the low-mid sensitivity range, only starting to become problematic for normal print size images from around ISO 6400. ISO 3200 is probably the highest I would feel comfortably shoot with if I wanted to make prints of A4 or below, but I'd go up to ISO 12800 for sharing images online at small sizes.

Examine images taken at ISO 1600 and you'll find areas of the image have a slight painterly effect, but it's not noticeable at smaller, or normal, printing sizes.

The camera's metering system does a good job in general at helping to produce accurately exposed images. However, I have found on several occasions, the A6000 is prone to underexposure, meaning you'll need to dial in some exposure compensation (if shooting in aperture priority or shutter priority) to get a balanced image. This is particularly problematic if you're shooting something with high contrast, and it can help to switch to spot metering.

The automatic white balance is decent at reproducing accurate colours, but some artificial light sources can confuse it slightly, causing it to produce warm or yellow toned images in some circumstances. If you're finding this to be particularly problematic, you can switch to a more appropriate white balance setting, such as Incandescent.

The tilting screen makes shooting from different angles much easier.

Sony has been very keen to push the fact that the A6000 has the fastest autofocusing speeds of any APS-C format sensored camera. Although I don't think the speeds match those of the smaller Micro Four Thirds format, it doesn't seem to be far off, and, especially in good light, focusing speeds are very impressive.

When light levels drop, the camera will hunt around a little longer, but it's rare for a false positive focus to be displayed on the screen, and generally I have been impressed with lower light speeds – it's definitely an improvement over the NEX-6.

Along with Picture Styles, you can also choose to experiment with Picture Effects. Unlike the Styles, you can't shoot using Effects in raw format, so you'll need to switch to JPEG only shooting first, and it also means that you'll be stuck with whatever filter you use. It's a shame that these can't be shot in raw format, or raw and JPEG format simultaneously, like you can with Olympus or Panasonic cameras. Nevertheless, there is a good selection available, and they're worth experimenting with to see if you particularly like any – my favourites are Toy Camera and High Contrast Monochrome.

The A6000 is packaged with a 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 lens.

As standard, the A6000 is packaged with a 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 lens. It's a good all-round performer for your first optic, giving you a good range of different focal lengths, and you can also get some pleasing shallow depth of field effects while using it. If you can stretch to the Zeiss 16-70mm f/4 optic, it's a worthwhile investment, as that extra reach can be useful, and generally images shot while using it are sharper. Other E-mount lenses, such as the 50mm f/1.8 optic, are also worth investigating, and it's nice to see such a wide range available now.

Battery life doesn't seem to be quite as bad as the A7/R, probably due to the smaller sensor size, which is positive news. You'll probably still need to purchase an additional battery if you're planning on taking the A6000 on any long trips though, just to be on the safe side.

You can also shoot in monochrome using Picture Styles. When you shoot in Picture Styles, you can also shoot in raw format, meaning you have a clean version of the image down the line should you need it.

Once again Sony has brought something intriguing and exciting into the compact system camera territory. Those who spent the latter part of 2013 gazing longingly at the A7, balking at the high price tag, will probably be especially be tempted by the A6000.

This camera comes very close to being the perfect compact system camera. It's so close it's frustrating.

A big part of this is the fact that setting the AF point is just too laborious, especially for a camera of this calibre. While it may seem like a small issue, it can slow down the process of taking pictures, and, that's pretty much the most important thing. I remain hopeful that Sony might be able to correct this problem with a firmware upgrade, as it's much easier to set the AF point using the A7/R. Focusing speeds are excellent though, only dropping a little when shooting in low light.

On a more positive note, the other elements of using the camera are very good. It's nice to be able to customise the various buttons to control what you want them to, while the scrolling dial for altering aperture and shutter speed is nicely reachable by the thumb.

Although the screen is, annoyingly, not touch-sensitive (which would have helped with the AF setting problem), it is at least tilting, which makes it useful for shooting from awkward angles. The electronic viewfinder is also great, being bright and clear and with an eye sensor which makes using it a seamless transition.

It's great to see Sony has revamped the menu system, giving all of its camera a unified look. It's a simple and easy to use menu, with everything where you'd generally expect it to be – it's certainly a welcome break from the confusing, and frustrating at times, menu system of the NEX cameras of old.

Coming to perhaps the most important aspect – image quality. It's great in the majority of situations, with the A6000 producing detailed, vibrant images. Low light performance is also good, with low noise and high detail, and not too much evidence of image smoothing except at the very highest sensitivities.

The 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens is a great all-round performer too. This is the kind of camera that you'll likely want to buy additional lenses for, and happily, Sony has a great range available now.

We liked

There's a lot to like about the A6000, not least the tilting, high resolution screen and the excellent viewfinder. Aside from the excellent image quality, probably the best thing about the A6000 is the way that all of the buttons, and the function menu, can be customised to suit your needs. It's a great way to work and means you can dump those settings you never use, and have quick access to the ones you use often.

We disliked

It's pretty annoying, for a camera of this standard, that there's no quick way to set the AF point. It really shouldn't be that difficult, or time consuming, to change the point, and if you're someone who likes to do that often, it can quickly make you grow tired of using the camera. It's something we mention often, but the lack of a touchscreen makes even less sense here. Sony has this technology readily available in its portfolio, so it remains a mystery why it is insistent on leaving it off its high-end products, especially when its biggest rivals, including Samsung, Panasonic, Olympus and the newest Nikon CSCs, are all embracing it.

Final Verdict

Sony has come within touching distance of creating the perfect compact system camera, but it's not quite there yet. Fantastic image quality, a small and sleek system, customisable buttons are all great to have, but there are a couple of niggles keeping it from true greatness.

]]>Nikon D3300http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/digital-slrs-hybrids/nikon-d3300-1212963/review
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/cameras-and-camcorders/cameras/digital-slrs-hybrids/nikon-d3300-1212963/reviewThe Nikon D3300 certainly ticks a lot of boxes for first time users, so should it be your first entry-level DSLR?Fri, 24 Nov 2017 17:12:00 +0000techradar.comThe Nikon D3300 may have been replaced by the D3400, but that's no reason to discount this entry-level DSLR.

Despite the growing popularity of mirrorless cameras, the entry-level DSLR market is still incredibly popular for those looking to take the next step in their photography journey.

Nikon's range of D3xxx models has proved incredibly popular over the years for new users looking to expand their creativity thanks to their blend of easy handling and solid performance, backed-up by an impressive range of lenses and accessories.

Features

APS-C CMOS sensor, 24.2MP

3.0-inch screen, 921,000 dots

1080p video capture

The Nikon D3300 features a high resolution 24.2MP APS-C sensor, which is pretty impressive when you consider the enthusiast-focused (and much higher priced) D7200 shares the an almost identical sensor with it. Like the rest of the Nikon range, the D3300's sensor does away with a low-pass filter on the sensor as well, which means even more detail can be captured.

In addition to this, the native sensitivity range runs from ISO100 to 12,800, and there's an expansion setting that takes it to the equivalent of ISO25,600, that should provide plenty of flexibility for a range of lighting situations.

Like the Nikon D5300, the D3300 sports Nikon's now second-generation processing engine, the EXPEED 4, allowing the D3300 to shoot continuously at a maximum rate of 5fps, while it can sustain this burst rate for up to 100 fine quality JPEGs. Not probably quite a match for some mirrorless rivals, but more than enough for most people's needs.

The EXPEED 4 processing engine is also responsible for allowing the D3300 to record Full HD movie footage at frame rates up to 50p/60p and with continuous autofocus. Helpfully, there's a microphone port as well as a built-in stereo mic for better sound recording during movie shooting. If you want 4K, you'll either have to look further up the Nikon line-up or at some mirrorless competition like the Panasonic Lumix G7.

Unlike some (pricier) rivals sporting articulating screens, the 3.0-inch display on the rear of the D3300 sits flush to the body. The absence of a touchscreen interface is also a little disappointing, especially when you consider how many of the camera's controls are changed via the menu system. If these are deal-breakers, then you might want to look further up the Nikon range to the D5600 or rivals from Canon.

Like pretty much every DSLR at this price point, the D3300's optical viewfinder only offers a 95% field of view. While it is bright and clear, not being 100% does mean that there is a chance of something appearing in the final image that you didn't notice when framing up your shot.

Connectivity options are pretty limited, so if you want to wirelessly transfer images you'll have to invest in the optional WU-1a Wireless Mobile Adapter

There are a host of Special Effects on tap, allowing you to jazz-up JPEG files and videos with a collection of styles. Nikon has boosted the list of effects to 13 for the D3300, and it now includes Pop, which increases colour saturation, Toy Camera, which creates a retro effect, and Easy Panorama. These effects can be previewed in real time on the LCD screen, so you can see exactly what you'll get once you trigger the shutter.

Connectivity options are pretty limited, so if you want to wirelessly transfer images you'll have to invest in the optional WU-1a Wireless Mobile Adapter to make it so. If you want a connected entry-level Nikon DSLR, you'll want to get the D3400. Featuring Nikon's SnapBridge technology, this functionality allows the D3400 to be connected wirelessly to your smartphone or tablet.

Build and handling

Polycarbonate construction

Small and lightweight body

Weighs 460g

The D3300 is the second DSLR from Nikon to use a monocoque construction - this means that the chassis is made from a single piece of material. Lighter than the D3200 it replaced, the D3300 is actually a bit heavier than the D3400, with Nikon managing to shave a very modest 15g off the 410g body-only weight of the D3300.

The grip is still deep and comfortable to hold, with the textured surface making it feel particularly secure in the hand.

The new 18-55mm kit lens that the D3300 will probably most likely be purchased with is now collapsible. While by no means small in comparison to compact system camera lenses of the same equivalent zoom range, when collapsed the lens is quite a bit shorter than its predecessor, making it easier to fit into a small bag when not in use.

When you want to use the camera (with this kit lens attached), you'll first need to press a button on the lens barrel to expand it back into normal proportions. This does mean that start-up time from packed away is a little slower than other cameras, but you can of course leave it extended if you need a quicker start.

There isn't a huge number of buttons on the D3300, which is to be expected of an entry-level camera. On the top plate you'll find a mode dial for switching between exposure modes, such as fully automatic, aperture priority and the newly incorporated Effects mode. Also on the top plate you'll find the exposure compensation button (for use in automatic and semi-automatic modes) and an info button, which helpfully turns off the rear display, preventing it from being a distraction while using the viewfinder.

A sort of quick menu is accessed on the D3300 by pressing a button labelled 'i' on the back of the camera

A sort of quick menu is accessed on the D3300 by pressing a button labelled 'i' on the back of the camera. After you've pressed this, use the directional keys to pick a setting you want to change – such as white balance – and then press OK to bring up the different options available to you. Unfortunately, this menu isn't customisable, so if there's something on this menu you rarely use, you're stuck with it.

There is also a function button near the lens mount. By default holding this down will allow you to quickly change the ISO, but you can change this to control JPEG quality, white balance or Active D-Lighting. ISO seems like a sensible choice since it's something you'll probably need to change the most often out of the options available.

Autofocus

11-point AF, 1 cross-type AF point

AF-assist illuminator

3D-tracking AF

Meanwhile, there's an 11-point AF system that we've seen on a host of previous models, which has a central cross-type AF point for extra sensitivity.

It's a little unremarkable, especially when compared to some mirrorless rivals, but its a tried and test system that does a solid job.

Autofocusing speeds are pretty high, especially in daylight or well-lit conditions. It's rare for the kit lens to hunt around to acquire focus, and rarer still for it to present a false confirmation of focus. Speeds do drop a little in lower light conditions, but it's only when it gets very dark that the lens struggles to focus at all.

It performs very well, allowing you to track a subject across the D3300's 11 AF points

The D3300 also sports Nikon 3D-Tracking technology and while it's not as advanced as that found on more sophisticated models, it performs very well, allowing you to track a subject across the D3300's 11 AF points.

Changing the AF point is very simple. All you'll need to do is press the directional arrow keys to move around to the point you need. As the central AF point is cross-type, it is more sensitive than the others, so you may find it beneficial to focus and recompose in certain situations, or, if you're just aiming for speed.

It's worth bearing in mind, though, that focusing speeds drop significantly when using Live View, so it's only really recommended you use that if you're shooting something stationery, or you're shooting from an awkward angle and can't compose using the viewfinder. This is where mirrorless rivals definitely have the edge.

Performance

The D3300's interface has a pleasingly modern appearance, with the high resolution giving the display beautifully rounded edges and displaying the interface's colors well.

When shooting, the camera displays three circles which represent shutter speed, aperture and sensitivity (ISO). These displays change as you alter settings using the scrolling dials, most obvious being the aperture circle which closes and opens to represent the opening and closing of the aperture blades. If you're new to creative photography, this is a great way to get to grips with the basics.

The D3300 has a dedicated 420-pixel RGB sensor to gather exposure, white balance and focus information to inform the Automatic Scene Recognition system.

In the majority of everyday shooting conditions, the D3300's general-purpose matrix metering system does a good job of producing accurate exposures, while the camera's automatic white balance also performs well. It manages to produce faithful colors even while shooting indoors, where under artificial lights produces images which are hard to fault, hardly erring towards warm tones at all, which is excellent to see in an entry-level DSLR.

Battery life is very good too, lasting for around 700 shots - better than similarly priced mirrorless rivals, though not quite as impressive as the D3400's 1200 shot battery life.

Image quality

ISO100-12,800, expandable to 100-25,600

No low-pass filter

Punchy colors

As expected, the D3300 has excellent resolving power. Even when zoomed in to images at 100% reveals that very fine details can be seen.

With such a high pixel count (24 million pixels), there comes the increased chance of noise appearing in images. The D3300 handles low light, high sensitivity situations very well. Noise only really starts to become particularly apparent when shooting at ISO 3200 above, and even then it's acceptable, or certainly preferable to a blurred or missed shot.

Image smoothing is something that can be seen right the way through the sensitivity run, but at the lower end of the spectrum it's not particularly noticeable, only when examining images very closely at 100% does it become apparent. When printing at normal sizes, such as A4, or sharing online, it doesn't present a problem.

One of the benefits of having a large pixel count is the ability to crop images and still retain a decent resolution, but this is something to bear in mind if you've been shooting at a high sensitivity and want to crop an image. Any image smoothing or noise may become more apparent the more you crop the image.

Verdict

With the Nikon D3300, you get a lot of seriously good kit for your money. For starters, the 24MP sensor is capable of producing excellent levels of detail. Then there's the interface. The crisp and clean look off the D3300's Guide Mode continues to be something which makes this camera appealing to novice users, helping you get to grips and understand the basics of photography as you shoot, whilst the collapsible 18-55mm kit lens is great when you're on the go.

While the autofocus system might not be overflowing with AF points, the 11-point AF system works very, with a decent 3D-Tracking mode for moving subjects. Autofocus could be snappier in Live View however, while it's a shame you don't get an articulated touchscreen display (you'll want the D5600 if that's what you're after) or Wi-Fi connectivity, but Nikon does make a cheap plug-in Wi-Fi adaptor if that's a deal-breaker for you.

These niggles aside and when you factor in the excellent battery life and the wealth of lenses and accessories available, not forgetting the excellent value it is right now, and the D3300 is hard to beat if you're looking for your first DSLR.

The arrival though of the D3400 with a virtually identical spec and built-in connectivity for roughly the same price means the newer camera just edges it.